PM Nguyen Tan Dung, his spouse and a high-ranking delegation of the Vietnamese Government on March 7 left Hanoi for official visits to Qatar and Kuwait.

Qatar and Kuwait are two countries with economic strength and big oil reserve.

These are the first visits made by the Vietnamese PM to the State of Qatar and the State of Kuwait since Việt Nam and the two countries established diplomatic ties.

The visits aim at further strengthening and expanding political and diplomatic relations, so as to create a favorable foundation for the development of multifaceted cooperation with these two countries.

Through these tours, bilateral cooperation will be promoted, especially in potential fields like petroleum, labor, and agriculture.

The friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and Qatar are flourishing. Vietnam opened its embassy in Doha in March last year. The two countries have inked many cooperation agreements on aviation; economics, culture, science; petroleum. The two-way trade turnvoer between Vietnam and Qatar increased from US $32.8 million in 2007 to US $79.5 million in 2008. Qatar is a big employer of Vietnamese workers, receiving 11,000 ones at the peak period.

VietNamNet/CP