Russia, Vietnam hold deputy ministerial defence strategy dialogue Vietnam and Russia convened the second defence strategy dialogue at deputy ministerial level in Moscow on March 21 to discuss strengthening bilateral defence ties. Speaking at the event, Deputy Defence Minister Sen. Lieut. Gen. Nguyen Chi Vinh said he believes the Vietnam – Russia ties will go a long way in the future. Russian Deputy Defence Minister Anatoly Antonov affirmed that Russia considers Vietnam a strategic partner. He pointed to increasingly complicated developments in the world situation, especially in the Asia-Pacific region where Russia and Vietnam are cooperating to promote peace. The two sides examined possible risks to the two countries and Asia-Pacific security, including terrorism. They shared the view that in order to maintain regional peace and stability, bilateral and regional cooperation mechanism should be strengthened, especially those for dialogue, strategic trust building, preventive diplomacy as well as conflict prevention and management measures. Both sides agreed to facilitate all-level visits and work closely together on training, strategic research, science-technology and military technology with a view to enhancing Vietnam-Russia defence ties. The two deputy ministers also hailed the bilateral strategic dialogue as a step in implementing the comprehensive strategic partnership, in which national defence-security cooperation plays a significant role. VNA