NAMRU INDO PACIFIC Facilitates U.S. – Vietnam Agreement for Collaboration in Military Medicine

Story by Sidney Hinds

Naval Medical Research Command

BETHESDA, Md. – Naval Medical Research Unit (NAMRU) INDO PACIFIC facilitated the signing of a Statement of Intent (SOI) between Vietnam Military Medical University (VMMU) and Uniformed Services University (USU) on September 9, 2024.

The signing took place at USU Bethesda, Maryland, with Lt. Cmdr. Jose A. Garcia, director of NAMRU INDO PACIFIC’s Vietnam detachment, serving as the lead facilitator. The SOI aims to enhance collaboration between both nations in military medicine, through joint efforts in medical training, scientific research and academic cooperation.

Lt. Gen. Nguyen Xuan Kien, VMMU President, and Dr. Glendon Diehl, the acting USU president, represented their respective organizations at the signing.

“NAMRU INDO PACIFIC, in collaboration with the U.S. Embassy’s Office of Defense Cooperation, has placed a stronger focus on advancing military medical cooperation between the two nations,” Garcia noted. “NAMRU INDO PACIFIC played a key role in facilitating the signing of the SOI between VMMU and USU by coordinating communications over the course of six months to finalize the agreement between both institutions.”

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Vietnam’s Minister of Defense, Gen. Phan Van Giang, emphasized their commitment to strengthening military medical cooperation during a recent U.S.-Vietnam Bilateral Defense meeting at the Pentagon. President Joe Biden also elevated the U.S.-Vietnam bilateral relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during a visit to Vietnam in September of 2023.

The growing collaboration between the U.S. and Vietnam in military medicine is intended to benefit both nations’ armed forces, and contribute to regional stability and global health initiatives.

NAMRU INDO PACIFIC conducts research in cooperation with host nations in Australia, Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam to improve global health, ensure military force health protection and address infectious diseases such as malaria, dengue fever virus and gastro-intestinal pathogens.