Vietnamese Defense Minister and Chinese Defense Minister met for the first time at the border

On the morning of May 15, the second Vietnam-China Border Defense Friendship Exchange officially began with a welcoming ceremony for the delegation of the Chinese People's Liberation Army to attend the Exchange at Lao Cai International Border Gate. General Phung Quang Thanh, Minister of National Defense, presided over the welcoming ceremony. After the welcoming ceremony, the military delegations of the two countries held talks at the Lao Cai Provincial Convention Center.

General Phung Quang Thanh and Senior Lieutenant General Thuong Van Toan shook hands on Ho Kieu bridge, on the Vietnam-China border.

At the meeting, General Phung Quang Thanh expressed his pleasure to welcome Senior Lieutenant General Chang Wanquan and the delegation of the Chinese People's Liberation Army to attend the second Vietnam-China Border Defense Friendship Exchange; at the same time, he highly appreciated Senior Lieutenant General Chang Wanquan's proposal that this Exchange would be chaired by the Defense Ministers of the two countries. General Phung Quang Thanh said that this was the first time in the 65-year history of Vietnam-China diplomatic relations that the two Defense Ministers of the two countries met at the border to demonstrate their determination to cooperate. That also shows that Vietnam and China highly value the friendship and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries.

General Phung Quang Thanh welcomed Senior Lieutenant General Thuong Van Toan to attend the Exchange.

Minister Phung Quang Thanh affirmed that the Exchange program is also an activity to concretize and implement the agreements and directions of the senior leaders of the two Parties and States on increasing high-level contacts between the leaders of the two countries' Ministries of Defense, enhancing border friendship cooperation between the border protection forces of Vietnam and China; demonstrating the spirit of solidarity, political trust, and increasingly practical and in-depth cooperation between the Vietnam People's Army and the Chinese People's Liberation Army.

General Phung Quang Thanh emphasized that high-level contacts and exchange and cooperation activities at the border such as this one will send a positive message to the people of Vietnam and China, that the armies of the two countries are determined to cooperate in the direction of solidarity and friendship, creating favorable conditions for economic development cooperation, for the happiness of the people of the two countries.

General Phung Quang Thanh introduces members of the Vietnamese delegation to Senior Lieutenant General Thuong Van Toan.

Senior Lieutenant General Thuong Van Toan expressed his pleasure to meet General Phung Quang Thanh again and co-chair the 2015 Vietnam-China Border Defense High-Level Meeting; thanked the Vietnamese side for the warm welcome and careful preparation.

Sharing the same view with General Phung Quang Thanh, Senior Lieutenant General Thuong Van Toan said that the first meeting of the two countries' Defense Ministers at the border is a concrete manifestation of the realization of the common perception of the leaders of the two Parties and two States in continuing to consolidate and promote the unceasing development of the Vietnam-China friendly and cooperative relationship; demonstrating the determination and confidence of the two countries' armies to join hands in building a peaceful and stable border.

Senior Lieutenant General Thuong Van Toan introduced members of the Chinese delegation to General Phung Quang Thanh.

The Vietnam-China Border Defense Friendship Exchange is an activity aimed at building friendship and solidarity between local authorities, people and border protection forces of the two countries, thereby enhancing political trust, promoting stable and sustainable development of relations between the two countries and the two armies; contributing to building and consolidating the trust of the people of the two countries in a peaceful, friendly, stable and long-term developed border.

The two Ministers reviewed the honor guard of the Vietnam People's Army at the welcoming ceremony.

From May 15 to 18, the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense and the Chinese Ministry of National Defense jointly organized the second Vietnam-China Border Defense Friendship Exchange Program in Lao Cai City (Vietnam) and Yunnan Province (China). The Vietnamese delegation was led by General Phung Quang Thanh, Minister of National Defense. The Chinese delegation was led by Senior Lieutenant General Chang Wanquan, Minister of National Defense.

Scene of the meeting between the two delegations.

Within the framework of the Exchange program, a number of activities will take place in Lao Cai province of Vietnam and Yunnan province of China, such as: Talks and discussions between the two delegations; bilateral patrols; the inauguration ceremony of the Vietnam - China Border Friendship Cultural House in Na Loc village, Ban Lau commune, Muong Khuong district, Lao Cai province; signing of friendship memorandums between border stations and localities in the border areas of the two countries...

According to People's Army