Vietnam is hosting an international defense exposition.
The event has attracted companies from the US, Japan and other countries.

This is Vietnam's second such expo since 2022 when the country's defense ministry held the inaugural event. More than 200 companies and organizations from dozens of countries are participating in the fair, which is underway at an airport in Hanoi.

The Southeast Asian country was close to the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Since then, Russia has retained a major stake in arms sales to Vietnam.

But as Moscow's invasion of Ukraine drags on, some in Vietnam are concerned about maintaining a stable supply of military equipment from Russia.
Attention is on whether Hanoi will shift to a diversification of suppliers after the exhibition.

The US, which has been deepening ties with Vietnam, has been actively selling its military products to the country.

US Ambassador to Vietnam Marc Knapper said on Thursday "we seek to deepen, further our friendship, broaden our cooperation with Vietnam."

Meanwhile, Chinese firms participated for the first time in the expo. An expert on Vietnam politics, ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute Visiting Fellow Nguyen Khac Giang, told NHK that Beijing is trying to keep the US and Japan in check as it is at odds with Hanoi over boundaries in the South China Sea.

He expressed the view that Hanoi will carefully advance cooperative relations with other countries over the procurement of military equipment, balancing between China and the US.