HANOI -- The Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense and the U.S. Department of Defense inked a Joint Vision Statement on Defense Relations here on Monday.
The statement was signed by Vietnamese Defense Minister Phung Quang Thanh and the U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter.
Speaking at the press conference after the signing ceremony, the Vietnamese defense minister said the statement will guide defense relationship on the basis of the Memorandum of Understanding for Advancing Bilateral Defense Cooperation signed by the two parties in 2011, including cooperating in dealing with war legacies, sharing experience in search and rescue, and launching bilateral dialogues and discussions.
The joint vision statement will enhance friendship, understanding and confidence building between the two countries, deepen the comprehensive partnership for the interests of the two peoples, and contribute to the maintenance of peace and stability in the Southeast Asia and Asia-Pacific region, Phung said.
Carter, for his part, claimed that the statement is to further strengthen the defense relationship between the two countries for the years to come, adding that the U.S. will support the operation of U.N. peacekeeping center established in Hanoi and the participation of Vietnem in UN peacekeeping activities.
The legacy of war should be dealt with according to the statement, said Carter, while he returned two war remains, a diary and a belt of Vietnamese soldiers to Phung for Vietnam to keep.
Echoing his keynote speech to the Shangri-La dialogue held in Singapore Saturday, the U.S. Secretary of Defense stressed that the U.S. will work with Vietnam to ensure the regional security, peace and prosperity, so that every nation in Asia-Pacific region can win together and all the interested parties can benefit.
Carter is on his official visit to Vietnam from May 31 to June1, at the invitation of Vietnamese defense minister Phung Quang Thanh.
