HANOI. Jan 23 (Interfax) - Russia is ready to share practices of combat testing of military hardware with Vietnam, Defense Minister Gen. of the Army Sergei Shoigu told his Vietnamese counterpart Gen. of the Army Ngo Xuan Lich at negotiations on Tuesday.
"Vietnam is our time-tested friend; we have relations of trust based on friendship and mutually advantageous cooperation. We are ready to receive your experts for consultations with our specialists and share the practices of testing military hardware in real combat," Shoigu said.
Trust-based close relations with Vietnam are a priority of Russia's foreign policy, Shoigu said.
"We regard your country as a strategic ally and an old and reliable friend. Vietnam is one of our key partners in the provision of security in the Asia Pacific region," he said.
The bilateral political dialogue has been sustainably developing on the summit level, Shoigu said.
"Last year's meetings between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang in Moscow and at the APEC summit in Da Nang were milestone events. We are set to implement the defense cooperation agreements reached on the summit level," he said.
Deputy defense ministers of the two countries successfully conducted the third round of the strategic defense dialogue in November 2017, Shoigu said.
"A number of military cooperation documents, such as the memorandum on cooperation in peacekeeping operations based on the UN Charter, were signed. We appreciate Russian-Vietnamese relations in the field of naval operations and military education," Shoigu said.
He said he expected the Tuesday negotiations to foster friendship between the Russian and Vietnamese defense ministries.