| Nation hopes to strengthen relations with Saudi
Arabia
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung yesterday,
March 23, received Saudi
Arabian Agriculture Minister Fahad Bin Abdul Rahman Balghanim and Commerce and
Industry Minister Abdullah bin Ahmad Zainal Ali Ridha.
Dung said at the reception that Viet Nam
hoped to strengthen bilateral co-operation to bring benefits to both sides,
especially in agriculture, oil refining and labour.
He told the visitors that trading had been
the strengths of both nations and that last year’s two-way turnover had reached
more than US$700 million. However, great potential in collaborative trade
remained untapped, he said, recommending more collaborative projects based on
each other’s strengths. Dung also suggested more exchange visits
between leaders, experts and businesses. Both nations should speed up the signing of
agreements on investment and free trade protection which would create a legal
framework for long-term ties, he said. Balghanim and Ridha agreed there was great
potential for agricultural partnership, especially in areas where Vietnamese
qualified products could be exported to Saudi Arabia. They said they hoped to work closely with
their Vietnamese counterparts on this visit to work out details of co-operative
projects, especially in industry, labour and oil refining. On the same day, Prime Minister Dung also
welcomed Belarus Ambassador to Viet Nam Valery Sudokho as he officially took up
this new post. Dung said the two nations had a very good
relationship and Viet Nam was always grateful for Belarusian help during its war
of resistance for and the country’s development process. He also affirmed that Viet Nam would like
to continue collaborating with Belarus in diplomatic politics, trade and
investment, education and national defence. The Vietnamese Government welcomed
Belarusian enterprises in areas such as auto manufacturing, mining equipment,
fertiliser manufacturing and banking and finance, and would try to create
favourable conditions for the companies involved. Sudokho reported that bilateral trade was
going well, with last year’s two-way trade turnover topping US$100 million. He
said he hoped that the Vietnamese Government would create favourable conditions
for him to complete his tasks.
Mozambican minister’s visit to help boost
military co-operation
President Nguyen Minh Triet yesterday,
March 23, extended a warm welcome to Mozambican Defence Minister Filipe Jacindo Nyussi and his entourage who have been on a
visit to Viet Nam. Triet said the visit would help boost
bilateral co-operation between the two countries’ militaries. He said the two countries had been working
hard to improve bilateral relations, which were underscored by Mozambican
President Armando Emilio Guebuza’s visit to Viet Nam in January, 2007 and
Vietnamese Party General Secretary Nong Duc Manh’s visit to Mozambique in April,
2008. Triet said Viet Nam was eager to share its
experiences with socio-economic development, and hoped the two countries would
find new areas for collaboration. Nyussi also handed Triet a letter of
greetings from Mozambican President Guebuza. Nyussi also applauded Viettel’s successful
bid to establish a telecommunications network in Mozambique. He said he also
hoped more Vietnamese enterprises would collaborate with Mozambican firms in the
future. Defence Minister Phung Quang Thanh
yesterday also met Nyussi and the visiting delegation. Thanh said the visit would help boost
mutual understanding between the two ministries and promote better relations
between the two countries. Nyussi meanwhile praised Viet Nam’s hosting
of the fourth ASEAN Defence-Military Meeting (ADMM-4). Thanh and Nyussi also discussed future
ministerial collaboration and co-operation on logistics, medical care,
eliminating poverty and disaster prevention.
VN urges ceasefire, end to civilian deaths in
Libya
Viet Nam called on parties involved in
military operations in Libya to cease fire and resolve the issue peacefully, the
Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nguyen Phuong Nga said
yesterday, March 23. She said: “Together with the international
community, Viet Nam continues to watch with deep concern the military actions
that have caused the deaths of civilians in Libya.” She made the statement yesterday in
response to reporters’ questions on Viet Nam’s reaction to current developments
in Libya. The spokeswoman said Viet Nam urged
concerned parties to promptly end military actions and sit down together to seek
a peaceful solution to the situation on the basis of fully respecting the UN
Charter, international laws, as well as all nations’ independence and
sovereignty. For the benefit of the Libyan people and
for peace and stability in the region, these parties should not create a
negative precedence in international relations, Nga said. Viet Nam would support every effort made by
all concerned parties, regional and international organisations in that
direction, Nga said.
Nation strengthens ties with Thailand
Viet Nam and Thailand will preserve and effectively
develop bilateral mechanisms to deepen their co-operative relations.
This was confirmed by Vietnamese Deputy
Prime Minister cum Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem and Thai Foreign Minister
Kasit Piromya at their talks in Ha Noi yesterday, March 23. The two sides expressed their belief that
bilateral ties would continue to prosper and contribute to each country’s
development. They agreed to urge their ministries,
agencies and localities to work together to successfully celebrate the 35th
anniversary of diplomatic ties on August 6. Khiem expressed his hope that the Thai
Foreign Minister’s visit would contribute to bolstering friendship and
multifaceted relations between the two countries. For his part, Kasit Piromya spoke highly of
Viet Nam’s role as the ASEAN Chair in 2010, expressing his delight at
achievements the two sides had recorded in multilateral forums. Kasit Piromya also took advantage of the
occasion to inform Khiem about progress over recent conflicts in the
Thailand-Cambodia border. Khiem affirmed that Viet Nam welcomed the
two neighbours’ agreement to hold meetings of the Cambodia-Thailand General
Border Committee and Joint Border Committee on Demarcation of Land Boundaries in
Indonesia on April 7-8. Viet Nam always desired that Thailand and
Cambodia would continue to work through peaceful negotiations on the basis of
fundamental principles of international law, the UN Chapter and in the spirit of
friendship and solidarity in the bloc, Khiem said. This was for the benefit of the two
countries’ peoples and for peace, stability and co-operation in the region and
the world at large, he said. Khiem and Kasit Piromya committed to
continue their co-operation at regional and international forums, contributing
to raising ASEAN’s position in the world arena.
VN delegation attends Jakarta International
Defence Dialogue
A Vietnamese military delegation led by Institute of
Military Strategy director Lt-Gen Tran Thai Binh attended the Jakarta
International Defence Dialogue that opened yesterday.
Themed “Strengthening security and
stability”, the event drew the participation of 1,300 delegates, including
defence ministers and military officers from 34 countries. Addressing the ceremony, Indonesian
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said world peace and security were facing new
challenges, evidenced by tensions on the Korean peninsula, the Thai-Cambodian
border dispute, Middle East instability, Somali piracy attacks and radiation
threats following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. He urged the world to co-operate more
closely to deal with old and new challenges.
The three-day event aims to gather
high-ranking military leaders, experts and policymakers from the Asia-Pacific
region to foster regional stability and promote co-operation among governments
to deal with international and regional security threats as well as to create a
strategic model for defence and security.
Vietnam welcomes Belorussian businesses: PM
The Vietnamese government is ready to create
favourable conditions for Belorussian businesses to cooperate with Vietnamese
partners, said Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.
At the March 23 reception for the
newly-accredited ambassador of Belarus to Vietnam, Valery Sudokho, PM Dung spoke
of areas where the two countries’ businesses could tighten cooperative ties,
including automobile manufacturing, mining equipment, tractors and production of
chemical fertilizers as well as finance-banking. He highlighted the fine relations
between Vietnam and Belarus, saying that Vietnam always attachs importance to
strengthening cooperation with Belarus in politics, diplomacy, trade and
investment, education and defence, for the benefit of both nations . He suggested the ambassador closely
coordinate with ministries and agencies of Vietnam to strengthen bilateral
relations and increase two-way trade. Ambassador Valery Sudokho expressed
his pleasure at working in Vietnam, saying he hoped the Vietnamese government
would create favourable conditions for him to fulfil his duties in the country.
VNN/VOV/VNS | 
