Ajit Doval, Vietnam defence minister agree to deepen bilateral defence cooperation

New Delhi: The national security advisor, Ajit Doval, met Vietnam’s deputy prime minister and minister of national defence, General Phan Van Giang, in Hanoi on Monday, with both sides agreeing to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation. The talks come as the countries expand military and maritime ties under their enhanced comprehensive strategic partnership.

In a post on X, the Indian embassy in Vietnam said Doval and Giang “reviewed ongoing bilateral defence cooperation and agreed to further deepen engagements in this domain.” Giang is also a member of the Politburo of the central committee of the communist party of Vietnam.

Doval arrived in Hanoi on Sunday for an official visit to meet senior Vietnamese leaders. He also held talks with minister of public security, General Luong Tam Quang, on Monday. Vietnam’s ministry of public security reported discussions on cybersecurity incident response, technology training and strategic information-sharing.

The visit follows Vietnamese president To Lam’s state visit to India in May, when bilateral relations were elevated to an enhanced comprehensive strategic partnership. The prime minister, Narendra Modi, and Lam agreed to strengthen cooperation in defence, security and emerging technologies.

The defence relationship is guided by a 2009 memorandum of understanding and a 2015 joint vision, followed by the joint vision statement on India-Vietnam defence partnership towards 2030 and an agreement on mutual logistics support, both signed in June 2022.

In November 2025, the two sides signed a letter of intent on defence industry collaboration and an agreement on mutual submarine search and rescue support. Their wider engagement includes military exchanges, training, naval visits and cooperation in United Nations peacekeeping, supported by regular defence policy and maritime security dialogues.

India gifted Vietnam the indigenously built missile corvette INS Kirpan in July 2023. New Delhi had earlier handed over 12 Larsen & Toubro-built high-speed guard boats under a $100 million line of credit in June 2022, strengthening Vietnam’s maritime capacity.

Two further lines of credit worth $120 million and $180 million were signed in July 2024 between India’s Exim Bank and Vietnam’s finance ministry, according to the Indian Embassy’s bilateral briefing.

In September, defence secretary, Rajesh Kumar Singh, met Vietnamese deputy defence minister senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Truong Thang in New Delhi during the BRICS Summit. The discussions focused on defence industrial collaboration, technology sharing and closer maritime cooperation.

Doval’s visit follows the fourth India-Vietnam security dialogue, held in New Delhi on October 16 and co-chaired by deputy, NSA Pavan Kapoor, and Vietnamese deputy minister of public security, Pham The Tung.

The dialogue covered economic security, maritime engagement, counterterrorism, emerging technologies and cybersecurity, alongside regional and global developments. It is held every two years under a 2016 agreement between India’s national security council secretariat and Vietnam’s ministry of public security.

Vietnam is an important partner in India’s Act East Policy and Indo-Pacific engagement. In their May joint statement, both countries reaffirmed freedom of navigation, respect for international law and peaceful settlement of maritime disputes.

The Embassy’s account of Monday’s Doval-Giang meeting did not announce a new defence agreement or equipment transfer. The talks form part of continuing consultations to implement the upgraded strategic partnership.