The Vietnam-Russia Joint Venture Bank (VRB) is to seek approval from the Vietnamese and Russian governments to play a role in government projects in the fields of nuclear power and defence among others, Vietnamese lender BIDV said on Tuesday.

The VRB is a 50/50 joint venture established in 2006 between BIDV, or the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam, and Russia's second-biggest bank, VTB.

Hanoi-based VRB will provide banking services for the projects, said BIDV, the country's second-biggest partly private lender in terms of assets, in a statement after it signed a memorandum with VTB.

The statement gave no details on the projects.

Russia has been helping Vietnam train staff for the country's first nuclear power plant, with construction slated to start in 2020. National defence deals include Vietnam's purchase of Russian-built jet fighters and submarines.