PM Modi, Vietnamese PM hold substantive bilateral talks

New Delhi, Aug 1 , 2024  : Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended a warm welcome to visiting Vietnamese PM Pham Minh Chinh at Hyderabad House today after which the two sides sat down for substantive bilateral talks to energise the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The MEA spokesperson posted on X: “Taking India-Vietnam partnership to new heights! “ PM @narendramodi extended a warm welcome to PM Phạm Minh Chinh of Vietnam at Hyderabad House. “Substantive discussions to further energise the India-Vietnam Comprehensive Strategic Partnership on the agenda.” Earlier, the visiting Vietnamese Prime Minister Chinh was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan. The Vietnamese PM, who is on a three-day state visit to India, later went to Raj Ghat to lay a wreath.The strategic ties between India and Vietnam have been on an upswing in the last few years.In July last year, India gifted its in-service missile corvette INS Kirpan to Vietnam in reflection of growing bilateral strategic and defence partnership amid common concerns over China’s increasingly aggressive behaviour in the South China Sea.It was for the first time that India handed over a fully operational corvette to any friendly foreign country.Vietnam, an important country of the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), has territorial disputes with China in the South China Sea region.India has oil exploration projects in the Vietnamese waters in the South China Sea.