National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval on Monday met Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence, General Phan Van Giang, in Hanoi to review bilateral defence cooperation and discuss ways to further strengthen engagement between the two countries.
The Embassy of India in Vietnam shared details of the meeting in a post on X, stating that both sides reviewed ongoing defence cooperation and agreed to deepen their partnership.
“NSA Ajit Doval met General Phan Van Giang, Politburo Member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence of Viet Nam, today. They reviewed ongoing bilateral defence cooperation and agreed to further deepen engagements in this domain,” the Embassy posted.
Doval arrived in Hanoi on Sunday for an official visit aimed at strengthening strategic ties and reviewing the India-Vietnam Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
Welcoming his arrival, the Indian Embassy said in a post on X, “Welcome to Vietnam! National Security Advisor (NSA) of India Shri Ajit Doval, KC, landed in Hanoi on an official visit. NSA, during the visit, will interact with the Vietnamese leadership in line with the India-Vietnam Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.”
The visit follows the elevation of bilateral relations to an Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during Vietnamese President To Lam’s visit to India in May 2026.
During the visit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President To Lam held wide-ranging discussions on bilateral relations and exchanged views on regional and global developments of mutual interest.
Both leaders emphasised that stronger bilateral ties would benefit their countries and support their respective development goals, including India’s Viksit Bharat 2047 and Vietnam’s Vision 2045.
They also welcomed the implementation of the Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030, which provides a framework for expanding defence cooperation between the two countries.
Doval’s visit comes amid continued engagement between New Delhi and Hanoi on regional security and strategic issues.
Last month, India and Vietnam held the fourth edition of their Security Dialogue in New Delhi, reviewing cooperation in counter-terrorism, cybersecurity, maritime security, economic security and emerging technologies.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the dialogue was co-chaired by India’s Deputy National Security Advisor Pavan Kapoor and Vietnam’s Deputy Minister of Public Security, Senior Lieutenant General Pham The Tung.
“Both sides undertook a comprehensive review of ongoing cooperation between the two countries covering, inter alia, economic security, maritime engagements, counter-terrorism, emerging technologies and cyber security. They also exchanged views on the regional and global security environment and reaffirmed their commitment to closer collaboration on issues of mutual interest,” the MEA said in a statement.
The dialogue also reaffirmed the two countries’ commitment to strengthening cooperation in traditional and emerging security domains.
According to the MEA, the India-Vietnam Security Dialogue is held biennially under a 2016 Memorandum of Understanding between India’s National Security Council Secretariat and Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security.
(ANI Inputs)
