Scholarships for post-graduate defense studies to be granted to ten students in ASEAN, including one from Vietnam.

Photo: Embassy of Australia

Australia announced the introduction of the ASEAN-Australia Defence Scholarships at the recent ASEAN-Australia Special Summit, which will fully fund eleven scholars to complete a two-year “Master’s of Strategic Studies” in Australia.

Starting from next year, Australia will fund one representative from each ASEAN member, including Vietnam, to study in Australia and also one Australian scholar.

“This program will be the first of its kind for ASEAN defense officials,” said Australian Minister for Defence Marise Payne. “It will see ASEAN and Australia’s best and brightest working together to share their experiences and develop their strategic thinking. It will help us build our collective capacity to deliver sophisticated and effective regional defense cooperation in a dynamic regional security environment.”

Australia commenced the Defence Cooperation Program with Vietnam in 1999 and since then more than 2,000 training positions have been provided for Vietnamese defense personnel, including Defence Scholarships in Australia and Vietnam. “This new initiative will be such a great addition to bilateral and multilateral defense relations,” said Colonel Nerolie McDonald, the Australian Defence Attaché to Vietnam. “I am confident that personnel from the Vietnamese People’s Army will seek to take up this opportunity. Vietnamese defense students are outstanding performers in our Defence Cooperation Program courses and I know they will do well again in this program.”

ASEAN and Australia share common security concerns and regional challenges and have been working together to achieve the common goal of protecting and promoting a stable rules-based global order. Australia strongly supports the contribution of the ASEAN-led regional security architecture to security and stability in Southeast Asia. This includes fostering practical defense cooperation within the ADMM-Plus framework. The ASEAN-Australia Defence Scholarships will support the ASEAN-Australia Plan of Action to implement the Strategic Partnership, notably by enhancing defense cooperation.

More details on the scholarship will be announced in the coming months through the Australian Defence Attaché Office in Vietnam./.

VNF/Vn Economic Times