Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met his Vietnamese counterpart, Gen. Phan Van Giang, in Kuala Lumpur on November 1. The meeting took place on the sidelines of the 19th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) and ahead of the 12th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus). Expressing satisfaction over the discussions, Rajnath posted on X, “Happy to have met the Defence Minister Phan Van Giang in Kuala Lumpur.” The two ministers reviewed ongoing defence cooperation between India and Vietnam and explored ways to further strengthen strategic and security ties between the two nations.
Earlier on October 31, he also held a bilateral meeting with Malaysia’s Defence Minister, Dato’ Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin, in Kuala Lumpur. The two leaders discussed avenues to enhance the India–Malaysia defence partnership. “Had a very good conversation with the Defence Minister of Malaysia, Dato’ Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin in Kuala Lumpur. Discussed ways to further strengthen the India-Malaysia defence partnership,” Rajnath posted on X.
The second edition of ASEAN-India Defence Ministers’ Informal Meeting, under the chairmanship of Malaysia, is also taking place wherein Defence Ministers from all ASEAN member countries will take part. The meeting aims to further strengthen defence and security cooperation among ASEAN member states and India and advance the Act East Policy, the Ministry of Defence stated. Rajnath also met US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth in Kuala Lumpur, where the two leaders signed a 10-year ‘Framework for the US-India Major Defence Partnership’, heralding a new era in deepening the defence ties between the two nations. “This Defence Framework will provide policy direction to the entire spectrum of the India-US Defence Relationship. It is a signal of our growing strategic convergence and will herald a new decade of partnership,” he said.
