The Vietnamese and American navies have begun their eighth annual Naval Engagement Activity (NEA) in the coastal Khanh Hoa Province, days after a US vessel sailed past a disputed island in the South China Sea.

The NEA officially began on Wednesday when the USS Coronado and USNS Salvor ships docked at Cam Ranh International Port. Over the course of five days, crews from the two countries will practice diving, salvage, ship handling, medical evacuations, and the Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea (CUES).

Ashore, skill exchanges will be held focusing on shipboard damage control, shipboard medicine, and law. According to an official press release, there will also be “formal office calls, band concerts, community relations events, and team sports.”

“The United States values our comprehensive partnership with Vietnam and we look forward to deepening our relationship and people-to-people ties through engagements like NEA,” Rear Admiral Don Gabrielson said in a statement. “By working and interacting together regularly we foster meaningful relationships and trust between our nations that contribute to the peace and prosperity of the region.”

Held annually since 2010, this is the first time the event is being held in Khanh Hoa Province. Previous NEA exercises took place in Da Nang, 300 miles to the north.

https://www.rt.com/news/395494-us-joint-exercises-vietnam/