The delegation of officials of the Vietnam Peacekeeping Department is on a working visit to Australia from July 26 to August 2, 2025. At the Australian Ministry of National Defense headquarters, the Vietnam Peacekeeping Department delegation led by Major General Pham Manh Thang had a working session with Mr. Bernard Philip - Director of the Department of International Policy, Australian Ministry of National Defense.
At the meeting, the two sides discussed the results of bilateral cooperation in the field of United Nations peacekeeping, cooperation orientations in the coming time and signed a 3-year plan (2025 - 2027) to implement a peacekeeping partnership agreement between the two governments.
At the meeting, Major General Pham Manh Thang emphasized Vietnam's policy of proactively and actively participating in multilateral mechanisms on defense and security, including United Nations peacekeeping, affirming that Vietnam is a responsible member of the United Nations.
Major General Pham Manh Thang added that in June 2025, the Vietnamese National Assembly passed the Law on peacekeeping, creating a full legal corridor for Vietnam's participation in this activity.
Vietnam began sending individual officers to participate in United Nations peacekeeping in 2014, then deployed its forces. To date, about 1,100 Vietnamese soldiers have participated in the missions.
Notably, the rate of female soldiers participating in the operation reached 16.6%, much higher than the general level of many countries.
"Vietnam aims to achieve 18% for women in the form of units and 20% for women in the form of individuals by the end of 2025," said Major General Pham Manh Thang.
According to Major General Pham Manh Thang, international cooperation is one of the important pillars for Vietnam's participation in United Nations peacekeeping activities.
To date, Vietnam has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation in the field of United Nations peacekeeping with 10 countries. Of which, there are 4 members of the United Nations Security Council (except for the UK).
Australia is the only country to sign a peacekeeping partner agreement with Vietnam at the Government level, and is considered one of Vietnam's leading partners in the field of United Nations peacekeeping.
In the coming period, the two sides agreed to focus on implementing the signed 3-year plan (2025 - 2027), with specific activities such as: promoting exchange programs on mental health and force protection into annual activities, cooperation in the fields of logistics, search and rescue, multilateral drills on peacekeeping.
Currently, Vietnam is proposing to the United Nations to recognize a qualified UNSOC training course. Based on its experience, Vietnam also asked Australia for support in this matter.
At the meeting, Mr. Bernard Philip highly appreciated Vietnam's increasingly active role in peacekeeping missions, and expressed confidence in the prospects of increasingly extensive and practical cooperation between the two countries.
The two sides also agreed to promote more substantial activities within the framework of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda and speed up the recognition of peacekeeping training programs organized by Vietnam to meet United Nations standards.
