The meetings were part of the 20th ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM-20) and the 13th ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting Plus (ADMM+) in Cebu, the Philippines.
During his talks with Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defense Richard Marles, General Giang called for further cooperation between Vietnam and Australia. The two sides should continue implementing their cooperation agreements, which include delegation exchanges, naval cooperation, search and rescue, post-war remediation, and mutual support at international and regional multilateral forums, he said. General Giang also asked Australian experts to share their experience in searching, recovering, and identifying of martyrs’ remains.
During General Giang's meeting with Japanese Minister of Defense Koizumi Shinjiro, both agreed to deepen defense cooperation in line with the Vietnam-Japan Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. They also spoke highly of ASEAN-Japan defense cooperation in training, cybersecurity, and capacity-building.
During talks with Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro, General Giang and Secretary Teodoro agreed that defense cooperation remains a key component of their bilateral ties, especially as Vietnam and the Philippines are celebrating 50 years of diplomatic ties in 2026. They also agreed to promote cooperation in maritime security, search and rescue, defense industry, military medicine, cybersecurity, and human resource training.
The same day, General Giang also met with US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. They agreed to continue coordinating and promote defense ties based on Vietnam and the US individual needs, capacity, and interests, contributing to global and regional peace, stability, and development.
Both also exchanged information and war memorabilia in support of Vietnam’s “500-day campaign” to accelerate the search, recovery and identification of martyrs’ remains. The exchanges demonstrated the motto “setting aside the past and looking towards the future” between Vietnam and the US.
