At a  meeting in Hanoi on Thursday, Vietnamese Minister of Defense Ngo Xuan Lich and his Japanese counterpart Takeshi Iwaya agreed to work closely in co-chairing the ADMM+ Expert group on maintaining peace when Vietnam becomes the ASEAN Chair in 2020. The two sides will continue to boost cooperation in training, capacity building, IT, UN peacekeeping activities, military medicine, and the national defense industry.

Minister Lich said he hoped the two countries will strengthen bilateral cooperation in overcoming the aftermath of war in Vietnam, ensuring maritime security, search and rescue, and participating in UN missions.