Viet Nam wished to strengthen and
deepen its close partnership with Australia, said President Nguyen Minh Triet
when receiving Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd in Ha Noi yesterday, April
13.

President Nguyen Minh Triet welcomes Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd in Ha Noi on April 13. (Photo: VNS)

He said
Viet Nam wished to boost co-operation in economics, trade and investment between
the two countries.

Triet
emphasised the importance of co-operation in the field of education and
training, adding that the Vietnamese student community in Australia was acting
as a bridge to boost the co-operative and friendly relations between the two
countries.

The
President said Viet Nam was thankful for the significant and meaningful support
from Australia which contributed to the cause of national building, especially
via Official Development Assistance (ODA). Bridges in Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta,
My Thuan and Cao Lanh were symbols of that friendship, he said.

Rudd
said Australia was glad to help Viet Nam during its development and spoke highly
of Viet Nam in the ASEAN region and international arena. He affirmed that the
relations between Viet Nam and Australia had gone beyond the pure bilateral
relations but via multilateral channels as well.

He said
Australia wished, along with Viet Nam and other partners in the region, to
ensure security within the framework of the East Asia Summit.

Prime
Minister Nguyen Tan Dung also warmly received Rudd yesterday.

Dung
said the two nations had shared many similar ideas in multilateral forums and
that co-operative relations between the two countries had seen progress in every
area.

He
highly appreciated the outcome of the meeting between the foreign ministers of
both sides, and said that the agreements concluding from the meeting would mark
the next steps in diplomatic relations between Viet Nam and Australia.

Dung
also expressed Viet Nam’s gratitude for Australia’s help in successfully
organising diplomatic meetings during its chairmanship of ASEAN last year.

Rudd
congratulated Viet Nam for its successful ASEAN chairmanship which he said
expanded the scope of the regional forum.

He also
said that both sides should push for more co-operation, especially in natural
resources exploitation and energy, which were Australia’s strengths.

Also
yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem held a
meeting with his Australian counterpart.

At the
meeting, Khiem said Rudd’s visit would help boost the comprehensive partnership
between the two countries.

Both
ministers said that the two countries would continue to co-operate closely in
key areas according to the Viet Nam – Australia action plan for the 2010-13
period. They also agreed that both sides would take advantage of the ASEAN -
Australia - New Zealand Free Trade Area agreement to boost economic and trade
partnerships.

Rudd
affirmed that Viet Nam would remain the priority recipient of ODA from
Australia.

HCM visit

Rudd
yesterday delivered a keynote speech to open RMIT International University
Vietnam’s Recreation and Events Complex and Residential Centre in HCM City.

RMIT
International University Vietnam, an affiliate of the 138-year-old Royal
Melbourne Institute of Technology, set up shop 10 years ago, the first foreign
university to do so.

Rudd
said the institution, which boasted 6,000 students, was an important part of the
skilling-up of Viet Nam’s young people.

At
around 25,000, Australia has the largest number of Vietnamese students. It
grants 225 post-graduate scholarships for Vietnamese every year.

Australia was Viet Nam’s 13th largest trading partner with bilateral trade
almost reaching US$3.7 billion last year, up 14 per cent from 2009.

The
figure stood at nearly $600 million in the first two months of this year.

On the
same day, Rudd also visited the HCM City Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Centre,
announcing a grant of $1 million over four years for the Red Cross’ Special Fund
for the Disabled.

*
Defence Minister receives Romanian counterpart

Defence Minister
General Phung Quang Thanh warmly received Viorel Oancea, secretary of the
Romanian Defence Ministry, in Ha Noi yesterday.

During
the reception, Thanh said he hoped the visit would contribute to strengthening
friendship relations and mutual understanding between the army and people of the
two countries in the future.

For his
part, Oancea said he was pleased to visit Viet Nam and witness the country’s
achievements in its nation building and development process.

A
defence co-operation agreement between the Vietnamese Government and the
Romanian Government was inked during the visit.

VietNamNet/Viet
Nam News