Hanoi, December 24 (RHC)-- Vietnam and Cuba have agreed to take measures to boost their defense cooperation to the next level of development in the future, for the sake of the two countries, armies, and peoples.

The agreement was reached at a meeting between Vietnamese Minister of Defense General Phung Quang Thanh and visiting Minister of Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces Senior Lieutenant General Leopoldo Cintra Frias in Hanoi.

The Cuban official and his entourage arrived in the Southeast Asian country on December 16th for a friendship visit at the invitation of General Thanh, who is also a member of the Politburo and deputy secretary of the Party Central Committee's Military Commission.

During the talks, the host and guest reviewed the outcomes of the bilateral cooperation based on a defense agreement signed between the two sides in 2011 and another on the same matter for 2014-16.

General Thanh said Vietnam always remembers the valuable support that Cuba had provided for the Southeast Asian country during its past struggle for national independence as well as in its reconstruction efforts.

The Vietnamese general expressed his belief that the visit will help boost the bilateral cooperation and the friendly relationship between the two armies and peoples.

Both sides shared the same view that the objective of the Vietnam-Cuba relation is to help each other enhance their respective defense capabilities in order to ensure sovereignty and territorial integrity, and protect their political systems, the peaceful life of their people, and their prosperous development.

This is the first Vietnam visit by the Cuban official as the Minister of Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces.