Article Posted on : - May 27, 2015

Union Minister for Defence Manohar Parrikar and the Minister of National Defence of Vietnam General Phung Quang Thanh signing a joint vision statement on Defence Cooperation in Progress in New Delhi on Tuesday. A PTI photo.

NEW DELHI (PTI): India and Vietnam have decided to enhance their bilateral defence cooperation and signed a joint vision statement for the next five years.

The statement was signed by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and his Vietnamese counterpart Gen Phung Quang Thanh at the end of delegation-level talks in here on Monday.

An MoU on cooperation between the Coast Guards of the two countries was also signed in the presence of the two Defence Ministers, an official statement issued on Tuesday said.

The Vietnamese Defence Minister is on a 3-day official visit to the country at the invitation of Parrikar.

At the delegation-level talks, the two sides discussed wide-ranging issues concerning defence cooperation, including cooperation in maritime security.

Both sides reiterated their commitment to further enhancing the ongoing defence engagements for mutual benefit, the statement said.

Defence officials refused to share details of the vision statement saying it was "classified".

Vietnam is involved in a territorial dispute with China in the South China Sea.