India and Vietnam on Sunday, 13 September 2026, held high-level discussions on strengthening their Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and advancing defence industrial cooperation, on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi. The bilateral engagement underscores both nations' resolve to deepen security and strategic linkages at a moment of heightened geopolitical activity across the Indo-Pacific.

Defence Secretaries Hold Bilateral Talks

Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh met Vietnamese Deputy Minister of National Defence Senior Lt Gen Nguyen Truong Thang on the Summit's sidelines. The two sides discussed further deepening the Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, strengthening defence industrial cooperation, and expanding bilateral defence ties — all framed around building a free, open and prosperous Indo-Pacific.

The Ministry of Defence shared details of the meeting on X, noting that both officials explored concrete avenues for expanding bilateral defence cooperation within the broader strategic framework already in place between the two countries.

Modi-Hung Summit Meeting on Saturday

The defence secretary-level talks followed a leaders' meeting the previous day. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Vietnamese counterpart Prime Minister Lee Minh Hung met on Saturday, 12 September 2026, on the BRICS Summit sidelines, reviewing the full spectrum of bilateral ties.

In a post on X, PM Modi outlined six priorities discussed during the meeting: deepening defence and security cooperation — including a proposed 2+2 dialogue mechanism — expanding cooperation in energy, rare earths, and space, targeting USD 25 billion in bilateral trade by 2030, encouraging greater two-way investment, and strengthening cultural and civilisational linkages. Modi affirmed that 'Vietnam will always remain a key pillar of India's Act East Policy and MAHASAGAR vision.'

Partnership Elevated in May 2026

The stepped-up engagement builds on a landmark upgrade earlier this year. India and Vietnam formally elevated bilateral relations to the Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in May 2026, during the state visit of Vietnamese President To Lam to New Delhi. The BRICS Summit interactions — first at the leaders' level, then at the defence secretary level — signal that both governments are moving quickly to operationalise the upgraded framework.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) confirmed that the Modi-Hung meeting reviewed progress made since May and addressed several regional and global issues of mutual importance.

India as BRICS Chair and the Regional Context

India holds the BRICS chairmanship in 2026 and is hosting the two-day 18th BRICS Summit at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. The Summit brings together heads of BRICS member states — Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and the United Arab Emirates — along with partner countries including Vietnam.

The India-Vietnam defence push at a multilateral gathering of this scale carries additional strategic weight: it signals intent to both allies and rivals in the Indo-Pacific, particularly at a time when competition for influence over rare earths and maritime lanes is intensifying. Notably, this is the first BRICS Summit at which Vietnam participates as a formal partner country, adding symbolic value to the bilateral engagements taking place on its sidelines.

With a 2+2 mechanism proposed and a USD 25 billion trade target set for 2030, India-Vietnam ties are entering an implementation phase — the coming months will test how quickly both sides can move from summit-level commitments to on-ground deliverables.