HANOI, February 22. /TASS/. Hanoi favors strengthening and developing traditional friendship, mutually beneficial and multifaceted cooperation between the Defense Ministries and the armed forces of Vietnam and Russia, Vietnam’s Deputy Minister of National Defense, Be Xuan Truong, said on Wednesday speaking at a reception on the occasion of the Defender of the Fatherland Day.

"Vietnam’s Ministry of National Defense and the Vietnamese People’s Army are interested in strengthening and developing the comprehensive Vietnamese-Russian strategic partnership, including bilateral cooperation in defense," he said.

He noted that traditionally close relations between Vietnam and Russia had stood the test of time. "We sincerely wish Russia to achieve even greater success in developing heroic traditions of fathers and grandfathers making a contribution to strengthening peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and in the whole world," Be Xuan Truong said. He emphasized that Vietnam and Russia will continue to scale up cooperation "with a view to strengthening cooperation in defense in the interests of our two peoples."

Russia and Vietnam have maintained traditionally friendly relations between the two countries’ armies, Russian Defense Attache to Vietnam, Colonel Andrei Likhachyov said in his speech. "The generals and officers of the Vietnamese People’s Army who received education in the Soviet and Russian military educational institutions are presently making a significant contribution to ensuring Vietnam’s defense potential," he said. "In spite of the complex international situation, by joining forces we are strengthening the Russian-Vietnamese military and military-technical cooperation and friendly ties between our countries’ peoples and armies for the sake of peace and prosperity," he said.