Vietnamese President Luong Cuong attends the ceremony
President Luong Cuong and his entourage attended a solemn ceremony in the Chilean capital of Santiago on the evening of November 11 (local time) to mark the 80th anniversary of the Vietnam People’s Army (VPA), the 35th anniversary of the All-People’s National Defence Day (December 22, 1989-2024), and the official opening of the Vietnamese Defence Attaché’s Office in Chile.
The event was attended by Chilean Defence Minister Maya Fernandez Allende, representatives from various Chilean ministries, the diplomatic corps, and attaché offices based in the Latin American country.
As part of his opening speech at the occasion, Vietnamese Ambassador to Chile Nguyen Viet Cuong said that both sides first established diplomatic ties in 1971. Since then, the two countries have maintained sound relations and increasingly expanded co-operation across a variety of fields. Recently, the two countries have regularly visited and exchanged high-level delegations, with senior leaders agreeing to ramp up and expand linkages between the two sides, including co-operation in in defence and security.
Accordingly, Vietnam first established a Defense Attaché in Chile in September this year and has since received enthusiastic support from Chilean authorities in completing the necessary conditions to put the defence attaché office into operation as soon as possible. At present, the Vietnam Defence Attaché office in Chile has met all of the set conditions to enter into operation, the Vietnamese diplomat said.
“The official opening of the Defence Attaché Office at the Vietnamese Embassy in Chile and the signing of a memorandum of understanding by the two countries' defence ministries during the President’s visit in the presence of the two heads of state are steps to implement and realize the commitments and agreements that have been reached. The Defence Attaché Office will become an important channel to carry out the foreign affairs activities of the Vietnamese Embassy in Chile in general, and military foreign affairs activities in particular, thus contributing to the implementation of the Vietnamese Party and State’s foreign policies and guidelines,” said Ambassador Cuong.
Upon addressing the event, Vietnamese Defence Minister Phan Van Giang highlighting the history and achievements of the VPA, which was established on December 22, 1944, under the instructions of President Ho Chi Minh. Over the past eight decades, it has since grown into a modern and revolutionary force deeply rooted in the people which fights for the people, becoming a special political force that is an absolutely loyal and trustworthy fighting force of the Party, State, and people of Vietnam.
The VPA has since recorded glorious achievements in the cause of national liberation, construction, and defence.
Defence Minister Giang further emphasized that the designation of National Defence Day on December 22, 1989, was a continuation of the Vietnamese people’s tradition of united defence against foreign invaders, demonstrating the Party’s belief in the vital role of the people and the armed forces in building and safeguarding the nation. He also noted that Vietnamese defence diplomacy, a key pillar of the country’s foreign policy, has gained momentum over recent years, bolstering the nation’s international standing through strategic trust-building and enhancing relations with both countries and international organizations.
As part of its broader goal of fostering bilateral relations between both sides, Minister Giang announced the formal opening of the Vietnamese Defence Attaché’s Office in Santiago. The new office is to be located next to the Vietnamese Embassy and will focus on strengthening bilateral defence exchanges, disaster relief co-operation, and military training programmes, among other activities.
For his part, Chilean Defence Minister Allende congratulated Vietnam on the 80th anniversary of the VPA’s founding and hailed the event as a testament to the close and all-round ties between the two sides.
She highlighted the significant role of defence co-operation in the overall bilateral relationship, which was touched upon during the recent talks between Chile’s President Gabriel Boric and Vietnam’s President Cuong. The co-operation framework between the two countries was formalized through a memorandum of understanding on defence collaboration.
The Minister highlighted the opening of the Vietnamese Defence Attaché’s office in Chile as an important milestone in deepening the defence links between the two nations. She noted that the move will serve to facilitate co-operation in areas such as disaster response, humanitarian aid, and military training.