Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and his Qatar counterpart Hamad bin Jasim bin Jabir al-Thani have agreed to establish an energy and cooking partnership as well as a mutual interest joint investment fund worth US$1 billion.

The two prime ministers also discussed measures to boost cooperation in labor and trade to bolster their investment and financial relations.

They pledged to ask their respective foreign ministries to hasten negotiations on visa exemption for diplomats and official passport holders, and to sign a treaty to this effect soon.

Prime Minister Dung praised Qatar’s great achievements in turning the Gulf nation into a major regional and global financial and commercial hub, and expressed satisfaction with the development of bilateral relations between Vietnam and Qatar.

He invited Qatar PM Al-Thani to visit Vietnam.

Al-Thani welcomed Dung’s visit as a huge step forward in bilateral relations, and pledged to boost multifaceted ties with Vietnam, focusing on finance, energy, agriculture, labor and trade.

He also committed to recognizing Vietnam as a full market economy, and said his country will soon open a diplomatic representative office in Hanoi.

The talks were followed by the signing of treaties on avoidance of double taxation, encouraging investment and protection, cooperation in air-cargo transportation, and agreements on agriculture cooperation and investment promotion.

Dung’s visit is the first ever to Qatar by a Vietnamese prime minister since the two countries established diplomatic ties in February 1993.

Source: VNA