NSA Ajit Doval Meets Vietnam Deputy PM Phan Van Giang To Deepen Defence Ties

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval reviewed bilateral defence cooperation with Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence, General Phan Van Giang, in Hanoi on Monday where both sides agreed to deepen engagement in the sector. The Embassy of India in Vietnam shared details of the meeting in a post on X.

Doval met Giang, a Politburo member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and Vietnam’s deputy prime minister and defence minister, during his visit to the Vietnamese capital. The embassy reported that the two sides reviewed the progress of defence ties and discussed ways to strengthen cooperation.

“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 of India in Vietnam posted on X.

Visit And Partnership

Doval arrived in Hanoi on Sunday. He is scheduled to meet the Vietnamese leadership during the visit to review the India-Vietnam Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The embassy had flagged that agenda in an earlier post on X before his arrival.

“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 Embassy of India in Vietnam posted on X.

The visit comes months after India and Vietnam raised their ties to an Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during Vietnamese President To Lam’s visit to India in May 2026.

May 2026 Elevation

That May meeting set the broader direction. During To Lam’s visit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Vietnamese president held wide-ranging talks. They reviewed bilateral relations and exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest.

The two leaders underlined that stronger India-Vietnam ties would benefit people in both countries and support their national development goals. Those goals included India’s Viksit Bharat 2047 and Vietnam’s Vision 2045.

They also commended the implementation of the Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030. That document continues to guide the expansion of defence cooperation between the two countries.

Security Dialogue Context

Last month, India and Vietnam held the fourth edition of their Security Dialogue in New Delhi. The talks reviewed cooperation in counter-terrorism, cyber security, maritime engagements, economic security and emerging technologies.

The Union Ministry of External Affairs informed that India’s Deputy National Security Advisor Pavan Kapoor and Vietnam’s Deputy Minister of Public Security, Senior Lieutenant General Pham The Tung, co-chaired the dialogue. The ministry also outlined the scope of the discussions in an official statement.

“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.

The ministry further informed that the dialogue is held biennially under the 2016 Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation between India’s National Security Council Secretariat and Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security. The latest Hanoi meeting comes against that wider security partnership.

(With ANI Inputs)