Hanoi (VNA) – Minister ofNational Defence Gen. Phan Van Giang and visiting Cambodian Deputy PrimeMinister and Minister of National Defence, Gen. Tea Banh, reviewed theirministries’ cooperation in 2022 and agreed on a cooperation plan for thisyear during talks in Hanoi on February 19.

Addressing the talks, which were held following an official welcome ceremony for the Cambodia official, Minister Giang expressed his beliefthat Gen. Tea Banh’s official visit to Vietnam will be successful and create anew impetus for the two countries’ friendship, including between the two defenceministries and militaries.

The Cambodian official held that cooperationbetween the two militaries has continued to be enhanced and reaped fruitfulresults despite the complex COVID-19 pandemic. The two sides have shown theirdetermination to help strengthen the Cambodia - Vietnam ties through promotingextensive partnerships and effectively implementing their annual cooperation plans.

Both host and guest shared the viewthat 2022, designated as the “Vietnam - Cambodia and Cambodia - Vietnam FriendshipYear”, held special significance to the countries’ relations. Nearly 30symbolic activities were organised by the two defence ministries last year,including the first border defence friendship exchange in May; the ceremonymarking 45 years since the start of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen’s journeyto topple the genocidal Pol Pot regime in June; the third annual meeting of the defence ministers of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, and the first jointrescue exercise among the three militaries in September.

Agencies and units of both sides havealso maintained information sharing, safeguarded security and order along theland border and at sea, and fruitfully carried out the 2022 cooperation plan.

Agreeing on the defence cooperationplan for 2023, the two ministers laid emphasis on some focuses, including increasinginformation sharing and conducting joint patrols to maintain security and orderon land and at sea; coordinating closely with each other to build a long-termcommunication plan to popularise the solidarity and mutual assistance between thecountries’ Governments, peoples, and militaries, especially on the occasion of biganniversaries such as the 70th founding anniversary of the Royal CambodianArmed Forces in 2023 and the 80th anniversary of the Vietnam People’sArmy in 2024; working together to effectively implement cooperation activitiesrelated to Cambodia’s hosting of the 32nd Southeast Asian Games (SEAGames) and the 12th ASEAN Para Games; and continuing joint effortsto search for and repatriate remains of Vietnam’s volunteer soldiers andexperts who died during wartime in Cambodia.

Concluding the talks, the ministers inkedthe 2023 cooperation plan and witnessed the signing of the two defence ministries’memorandum of understanding on cooperation in military and defence law./.