Vietnam's defense chief to visit RP

Vietnam's defense chief to visit RP

MANILA (AFP): Vietnamese Defense Minister Gen. Doan Khue and his seven-member party are to arrive here tomorrow for talks on joint military cooperation, including seaborne rescues in the disputed Spratly islands, Filipino officials said yesterday.

A Defense Department statement here said the six-day visit will mark the highest-level military meeting to date between Vietnamese officials and their Philippine counterparts.

Khue, 71, will be accompanied by his deputy, Lt. Gen. Nguyen Trong Xuyen, and six ranking military officers.

Improved ties between the two countries, emphasized during President Fidel Ramos trip to Vietnam last March, also extends to the economic sphere. Manila has been a staunch supporter of Hanoi's bid to join the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).