Da Nang to Connect Vietnamese Alumni in India
	Vietnamese Cuisine Impresses Indian Foodies

That is the view of Dr. Rajaram Panda, Former ICCR India Chair Professor, Reitaku University, Japan, and former Senior Fellow, IDSA, New Delhi in his recent article on Eurasia Review. Quoting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindi press statement, which was released immediately after the two countries issued a joint statement on strengthening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the author stated that the Indian leader considered Vietnam an important partner in India's Act East policy and Indo-Pacific Vision.

According to Dr. Rajaram Panda, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's State visit to India was successful in many aspects. (Screenshot)

Vietnam and India, have adopted an action plan to expand the strategic relationship and are committed to working together for a free, open, rules-based, and prosperous Indo-Pacific. The two countries have also signed six Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) and finalized three other documents to expand cooperation in various fields.

Among ASEAN member states, Vietnam has emerged as an important partner for India in both trade and security. Meanwhile, Vietnam is also seeking to strengthen its defense and security relations with the country of the Ganges.

The new action plan aims to consolidate the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership established in 2016 during Prime Minister Modi's visit to Vietnam. This visit was marked by high-level political trust and fruitful cooperation in defense, economy, trade, investment, culture, education, and people-to-people exchanges.

India has decided to provide a US$300 million credit line to Vietnam, primarily aimed at enhancing maritime security. Both sides agreed to further strengthen efforts for peace, stability, and security in the South China Sea, to peacefully resolve disputes based on the principles of international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The two countries also committed to ensuring the safety, security, and freedom of navigation and overflight.

In the field of trade and investment, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh proposed that the two sides should have a new mechanism to further enhance bilateral trade within the next 3-5 years.

Speaking at the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA), Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh suggested that the two countries should discuss a new trade and economic cooperation agreement. The Prime Minister also called on India to invest more in key areas such as infrastructure, maritime and air connectivity, oil and gas.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Prime Minister Narendra Modi witnessed the two countries' Foreign Ministers handing over the Vietnam-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Action Plan for the 2024-2028 period. Photo: Nguyen Hong

Breakthrough steps

Since Prime Minister Modi's visit to Vietnam, bilateral trade has tripled, from over US$5 billion in 2016 to US$15 billion in 2023. The two sides have agreed to take strong measures to double trade and investment by 2030, including directing relevant agencies to take advantage of existing mechanisms for regular exchanges to remove trade barriers and strengthen trade promotion efforts. In addition, the opening of the first direct flight between the two countries in 2019 has helped the number of Indian tourists to Vietnam increase significantly, from 170,000 in 2019 to 400,000 in 2023. Currently, there are more than 56 weekly flights between major cities of the two countries.

Defense cooperation and strategic elements, along with the economic and cultural aspects of bilateral relations, have florished over the 52 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations (January 7, 1972), meeting the legitimate interests and aspirations of the people of both countries.

Both sides have committed to maintaining regular exchanges of delegations at various levels through different channels and have decided on an annual meeting of the two Prime Ministers, either through visits or on the sidelines of multilateral conferences.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Prime Minister Modi also emphasized the importance of further enhancing the role of the Vietnam-India Joint Commission co-chaired by the two Foreign Ministers to review and concretize cooperation as well as oversee the effective implementation of the Action Program to implement the Vietnam-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for the period 2024-2028.

In the context of the Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defense Partnership towards 2030 signed in 2022, the two Prime Ministers committed to expanding cooperation in the fields of defense and security industry, maritime security, building a trusted partnership in cybersecurity. India also pledged to continue supporting the training and capacity building of Vietnam's defense and security forces.

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