2019 to be an eventful year in Vietnam-Russia ties: diplomat
The year 2018 has witnessed impressive progress in the Russia-Vietnam cooperation in various fields, and 2019 promises to be an eventful year in the bilateral relations, said Russian Consul General to Ho Chi Minh City Alexey Popov on December 26.
Russian Consul General to Ho Chi Minh City Alexey Popov (L) at the press conference on December 26 (Photo: VNA)
HCM City (VNA) – The year 2018 has witnessed impressiveprogress in the Russia-Vietnam cooperation in various fields, and 2019 promisesto be an eventful year in the bilateral relations, said Russian Consul Generalto Ho Chi Minh City Alexey Popov on December 26.
At a press conference in HCM City, the diplomatsaid a number of activities will take place in 2019 as the two countries willmark 25 years since the signing of an agreement on their friendship.Additionally, they will also prepare to celebrate the 70th anniversary of theestablishment of the bilateral diplomatic ties in 2020.
He expressed his delight at the expansion ofbilateral connections in all aspects this year, including oil and gas,electricity, machine manufacturing and agriculture. Notably, frequent meetingsbetween Vietnamese and Russian leaders have created favourable conditions forthe two sides’ development cooperation.
Russian investment in the Southeast Asian nationhas surpassed 2.6 billion USD, while Vietnamese firms have invested 2.9 billionUSD in Russia.
In the first 10 months of 2018, bilateral tradegrew by 23 percent from a year earlier to approximate 4.8 billion USD, and thishelps make the trade target of 10 billion USD in 2020 completely feasible,Popov said.
He noted Russian localities are increasinglyinterested in developing relations with southern localities of Vietnam, addingthat meetings between officials of such cities as Saint Petersburg and Moscowand those from provinces and cities in southern Vietnam have been lifted to anew level.
Regarding the cooperation between HCM City andSaint Petersburg, the Consul General revealed that a cultural and businessdelegation from the Russian city will visit Vietnam in the time ahead.
Meanwhile, youth forums will take place in HCMCity in April and in Saint Petersburg in September or October next year. TheRussian city is also scheduled to host the HCM City Days from October to November.
In 2019, officials of the southern economic hubof Vietnam and Russia’s Sverdlovsk Oblast will also have meetings, and theSverdlovsk Cultural Days will be organised in HCM City.
Popov stressed that he is always ready tocoordinate to create optimal conditions for Russian and Vietnamese localitiesto boost cooperation. He is also willing to serve as a bridge linking Russianlocalities and HCM City, thereby helping to promote the two countries’relations. –VNA
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Russian Consul General to Ho Chi Minh City Alexey Popov (L) at the press conference on December 26 (Photo: VNA) 
