Vietnamese defense enterprises signed 16 contracts worth over US$286 million with foreign partners during the 2024 Vietnam International Defense Expo, which concluded in Hanoi on Monday.

The exhibition, hosted by the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense at Gia Lam Airport, gathered 242 enterprises from Vietnam and more than 30 other countries, including the U.S., Russia, the UK, France, Germany, India, Japan, South Korea, and China.

This was the second edition of the event, showcasing combat vehicles, weapons, military equipment, and technological solutions for the navy, army, air defense, logistics, and technical support.

At the expo, spanning an area of over 100,000 square meters, including more than 440 indoor and outdoor exhibition zones, many new military arms developed and manufactured by Vietnam's defense industry were introduced to visitors for the first time.

According to the organizers, the General Department of Defense Industry (GDDI) under the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense and Vietnam’s Military Industry and Telecoms Group Viettel signed 16 contracts valued at around $286.3 million with their international partners.

These contracts include 11 worth $278.3 million from GDDI and five from Viettel valued at $8 million.

In addition, 17 strategic cooperation agreements were signed by Vietnamese enterprises with advanced defense industry firms from the U.S., France, Belgium, and India.

According to the exhibitor list, 77 units from Vietnam joined the expo, with 69 types of weaponry and military equipment researched and produced by the Southeast Asian country’s military since 2022.

The total number of defense products displayed at this year’s expo was 464, 155 more than the previous exhibition.

The expo was initially scheduled to close on Sunday, but the defense ministry decided to extend it until Monday to further welcome visitors.

Deputy Minister of Defense Hoang Xuan Chien highlighted the five-day exhibition as the largest and most important defense diplomacy event in 2024.

It also coincided with the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Vietnam People's Army and the 35th anniversary of the All-People's National Defense Festival (December 22).

Chien said that as of 12:00 pm on Sunday, the expo had welcomed over 260,000 visitors and witnessed 1,872 bilateral meetings and contacts between exhibitors, citing organizational data.

Major General Le Quang Tuyen, deputy director of GDDI, commented that the event was a success.

It contributed to expanding Vietnam’s defense cooperation with other countries, opening opportunities to export Vietnamese defense products.

The first Vietnam International Defense Expo was held in 2022, attracting 174 enterprises from 30 countries.

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