Dien thanked France for its support and collaboration with the province in various fields, especially its participation in international festivals held at Hue City.

On Thursday, 13 agreements, including those on nuclear power for peaceful purposes, defense cooperation and building Vietnam’s biggest science and technology university, were signed by Fillon and Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.

The French Prime Minister concluded his four-day visit on Saturday.

France is the second largest aid donor to Vietnam after Japan. The country has donated over 2 billion euros (US$3 billion) for local programs and French firms have invested another $3 billion in 216 projects here.

Vietnamese exports to France totaled some $786 million last year.

Reported by Bui Ngoc Long