Defence cooperation continues to be a bright spot in the Vietnam-Canada relations, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang said at a meeting with Canadian Deputy Minister of National Defence Stefanie Beck in Hanoi on February 20.

The two sides reviewed recent progress in bilateral relations and expressed their satisfaction with the strong momentum across various sectors.

They noted that leaders from both nations have maintained regular meetings at major international forums. Bilateral trade reached 7.25 billion USD in 2024, surpassing pre-pandemic levels of 7 billion USD. Education and people-to-people exchanges have also flourished, with more than 20,000 Vietnamese students studying in Canada and a Vietnamese community of 300,000 living and working in the country, they noted.

Hang thanked Canada for its continued support to Vietnam in participation in United Nations peacekeeping operations, military medicine training, engineering, and language education.

In order to further foster bilateral ties in a more stable and practical manner, Hang suggested that the two sides increase delegation exchanges, especially at the high level which will provide valuable opportunities for leaders to discuss concrete steps to deepen cooperation.

She urged both sides to maintain regular dialogue mechanisms, including Deputy-Ministerial Political Consultations, Defence Policy Consultations, and the Joint Committee for Economic Cooperation.

For her part, Beck, who is on a visit to Vietnam for the third Vietnam-Canada Vice-Ministerial Defence Policy Dialogue, said that Canada highly values Vietnam's strategic importance in the region, and pays great attention to Vietnam in its Indo-Pacific Strategy.

She agreed on the importance of high-level exchanges, and affirmed that her country will work closely with Vietnam in bolstering bilateral ties.

Beck pledged Canada’s continued support in strengthening Vietnam’s role in United Nations peacekeeping operations.

The two officials also discussed regional and international issues of shared concern, including the East Sea issue, and committed to reinforcing cooperation at regional and international forums such as the United Nations, APEC, ASEAN, and the Francophonie./.