Tokyo (VNA)💯 - The 11th Vietnam-Japan defence policy dialogue took place in Fukuoka, Japan on February 10.

The event was co-chaired by Sen. Lieut. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien, Politburo member, member of the Standing Board of the Central Military Commission, and Deputy Minister of National Defence of Vietnam, and Kano Koji, Japan’s Vice Minister of Defence. At the dialogue, the two sides exchanged views on global and regional issues of shared concern. Chien reiterated Vietnam’s consistent foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, friendship, cooperation and development, as well as multilateralisation and diversification of foreign relations. Vietnam is willing to cooperate with countries and international organisations for peace and development in the region and the world, he stated, stressing that it remains committed to settle disputes through peaceful measures in line with international law, and maintain its “Four No’s” defence policy. Regarding the East Sea issue, he emphasised the need to respect international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), and to accelerate negotiations to finalise an effective and substantive Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC). For his part, Kano underlined the significance of ties with Vietnam, particularly in defence. He affirmed his country's support for upholding international law, highlighting the importance of joint efforts to build an environment of peace, friendship, cooperation and development. He expressed his belief that the frank and constructive discussions at this dialogue will further advance Vietnam-Japan defence cooperation in an effective and practical way. Chien said that since the 10th defence policy dialogue, bilateral defence ties have deepened significantly across all fields, including high-level delegation exchange, military education and training, capacity-building, defence industry, UN peacekeeping operations, war legacy remediation, military medicine and humanitarian assistance, search and rescue, and mutual support at multilateral forums. The Japanese officer praised Vietnam’s role in promoting regional and global peace and cooperation, expressing admiration for the country’s achievements sin the struggles for national independence and national reunification in the past as well as in the current economic development. He welcomed the strong progress in bilateral defence cooperation. Chien suggested that Japan increase training opportunities and scholarships for Vietnamese officers. He also sought Japan’s continued support for Vietnam’s contributions to UN peacekeeping efforts and its work in addressing war aftermath. Additionally, he voiced Vietnam’s support for Japan’s deeper engagement in multilateral forums for regional peace, stability and cooperation, especially ASEAN-led frameworks. Both sides agreed that while defence cooperation has made significant strides, there remains untapped potential for closer collaboration. They committed to further strengthening bilateral defence ties, focusing on contents and cooperation mechanisms agreed at the dialogue. On this occasion, Chien invited Kano to visit Vietnam for the 12th edition of the dialogue. Concluding the event, the two delegation leaders signed the minutes of the 11th Vietnam-Japan defence policy dialogue./.