Socialist Republic of Vietnam

(VNA) Vietnam and Russia opened a strategic dialogue on foreign relations, national defence and security in Moscow, Russia, on July 9.
It was the second of its kind so far in furtherance of high-level commitments made by the two countries during an official visit to Russia by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in September, 2007.
The Vietnamese delegation was led by Permanent Deputy Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh and the Russian side by First Foreign Minister Andrey Denisov.
The two parties focused on challenges to both countries’ security and foreign relations. They looked deep into bilateral relations in economics, trade and investment as well as measures to strengthen coordination of action at the United Nations and other international forums, especially in inter-regional mechanisms.
In an atmosphere of openness and mutual confidence, the two delegations discussed in depth a number of international and regional issues of mutual concern, focusing on the Asian-Pacific region in the wake of the global financial crisis./