National Security Adviser Ajit Doval’s visit to Vietnam has attracted attention in India for his visit to a Buddhist temple and the religious rituals he performed, India Today reported.

However, discussions held in Hanoi reveal a far broader strategic agenda centred on intelligence cooperation, cybersecurity, defence collaboration and the exchange of sensitive information.

The visit comes at a time when Vietnam continues to face pressure from China’s expansive claims in the South China Sea, while India is strengthening its role in the Indo-Pacific through deeper engagement with key regional partners.

Doval arrived in Hanoi on November 1 and held meetings with Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister General Phan Van Giang as well as Public Security Minister General Luong Tam Quang. The discussions focused on strengthening security cooperation at a time of growing regional uncertainty and increasing geopolitical competition.

One of the most significant outcomes of the meetings was Vietnam’s proposal to strengthen strategic intelligence exchanges with India, including the sharing of real-time information on political, strategic and security developments.

According to the Vietnamese side, both countries agreed to improve mechanisms for exchanging assessments of regional and international security trends, emerging threats and non-traditional security challenges.

The discussions also explored ways to establish faster and more trusted communication channels between senior leaders in both countries. Such arrangements would move beyond traditional intelligence cooperation by enabling more rapid responses to evolving security situations and improving situational awareness for both governments.

Vietnam additionally expressed interest in accelerating negotiations on a range of security-related agreements covering classified information, transnational crime and human trafficking. While no new intelligence-sharing agreement was signed during Doval’s visit, Hanoi’s proposals highlighted its desire to institutionalise deeper security coordination with New Delhi.

A particularly important proposal involved an agreement on the mutual protection and exchange of classified information. During his meeting with Doval, General Luong Tam Quang urged India’s National Security Council Secretariat to work with relevant agencies to advance discussions on such a framework.

The National Security Council Secretariat, which operates under the leadership of the National Security Adviser, plays a central role in coordinating India’s national security policies and advising the Prime Minister on strategic, defence, intelligence and cybersecurity matters. A classified-information protection arrangement would significantly enhance confidence between the two countries and facilitate more sensitive exchanges in the future.

Vietnam also sought greater cooperation with India in areas such as artificial intelligence, digital transformation, cybersecurity incident response and specialised training. These requests reflect Hanoi’s wider efforts to modernise its technological and security infrastructure amid increasingly complex regional challenges.

The proposals build upon several engagements already conducted this year. India and Vietnam held a Cyber Policy Dialogue in January, followed by their first Cybersecurity Consultation in September. Their fourth Deputy Minister-level Security Dialogue in New Delhi on October 16 covered issues ranging from economic security and maritime cooperation to counterterrorism, emerging technologies and cybersecurity.

The two countries have also discussed creating a joint counterterrorism working group, although no formal announcement regarding its establishment has yet been made.

India’s public readout of Doval’s meetings was brief. The Indian Embassy in Hanoi stated that Doval and General Phan Van Giang reviewed ongoing bilateral defence cooperation and agreed to deepen engagement further.

Vietnam’s account, however, provided greater detail. General Giang described defence cooperation as one of the most important pillars of the upgraded bilateral relationship and invited Indian defence companies to participate in the Vietnam International Defence Expo scheduled for December 2026.

According to the Vietnamese side, Doval stressed the importance of working with trusted partners in an increasingly unpredictable global environment. Vietnam also sought Indian assistance in training police peacekeepers and supporting security preparations for the APEC Summit that the country will host in 2027.

The broader security relationship between India and Vietnam has been gathering momentum for several years. In July 2023, India gifted the missile corvette INS Kirpan, along with its weapons package, to the Vietnamese Navy. New Delhi has also supplied 12 high-speed guard boats to Vietnam under a US$100 million defence credit facility, enhancing Hanoi’s maritime surveillance and coastal security capabilities.

Cooperation accelerated further in May 2026 when Defence Minister Rajnath Singh visited Hanoi. During that visit, both countries signed an agreement covering cooperation in artificial intelligence and quantum technologies.

Maritime security, defence manufacturing and military training also featured prominently in discussions, with both sides reaffirming support for freedom of navigation and a rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific.

Another major milestone came with the conclusion of the BrahMos missile agreement. On May 30, Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh confirmed that an agreement to supply BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles to Vietnam had already been signed. Reports suggested the deal could be worth around ₹6,000 crore, although detailed contract terms and delivery schedules remain undisclosed.

The strategic importance of the India-Vietnam partnership is closely linked to Vietnam’s geographic position and its longstanding maritime disputes with China. Beijing claims vast areas of the South China Sea, including waters also claimed by Vietnam and several other Southeast Asian states. The region contains some of the world’s busiest shipping lanes and has repeatedly witnessed confrontations between Chinese vessels and those of neighbouring countries.

For Vietnam, cooperation with India provides access to advanced defence equipment, naval support, training opportunities and potentially enhanced intelligence-sharing arrangements without the need to enter into a formal military alliance. It also diversifies Hanoi’s strategic partnerships as it seeks to maintain its independent foreign policy while balancing regional power dynamics.

For India, closer ties with Vietnam strengthen its strategic presence in Southeast Asia and support its wider Act East Policy. The partnership also complements India’s vision of a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific founded on international law, freedom of navigation and peaceful resolution of disputes.

Neither India nor Vietnam publicly stated that China was explicitly discussed during Doval’s meetings. Nevertheless, the context surrounding the visit is difficult to overlook. Vietnam remains one of the countries most directly affected by China’s maritime claims, while India has steadily expanded its security engagement across Southeast Asia.

The latest discussions suggest that bilateral cooperation is evolving beyond traditional defence ties into more sensitive domains such as intelligence sharing, cybersecurity, advanced technologies and strategic communications.

Although Beijing was not directly mentioned, China’s growing influence and increasingly assertive actions in the region appear to be an important factor shaping the strategic calculations of both New Delhi and Hanoi.

Agencies