Hanoi (VNA)– Italy supports Vietnam’s bid to run for a non-permanent seat in the UnitedNations Security Council (UNSC) in the 2020-2021 term, affirmed Prime Minister GiuseppeConte.

He made the affirmation at his meeting with Chairwoman of the National AssemblyNguyen Thi Kim Ngan in Hanoi on June 5 during his official visit to Vietnam.

Ngan said shebelieves the visit by Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte would contribute to steppingup the Vietnam-Italy strategic partnership.

She congratulatedthe guest on having successful talks with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc,saying “Vietnam highly values Italy’s position in the region and the world andwants to boost all-faceted cooperation with the country.”

PM Giuseppe Conte said his talks with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc openednew cooperative fields for the two countries based on the strategic partnershipwhich was set up in 2013.

He expressed his hope that the visit will create an impetus for bilateralcooperation to be expanded not only in economy, but also in culture, scienceand technology, noting Vietnam’s economy is growing dynamically.

The guest leader showed his delight at the growing parliamentary ties betweenthe two countries, as backed by visits, meetings and participation in forums bythe parliaments’ representatives.

Ngan was glad that the two countries’ sound friendship and cooperation madeprogress in all fields, saying the two sides actively implemented cooperativemechanisms, like the strategic dialogue at the deputy foreign ministeriallevel, the defence policy dialogue at the deputy ministerial level and thejoint committee on economic cooperation.

Italy is Vietnam’s fourth largest trade partner in the EU and Vietnam isItaly’s largest trade partner in ASEAN.

Bilateral trade value rose to 4.67 billion USD in 2018 from 1.8 billion USD in2010 and the two are striving for the figure of 6 billion USD in 2020 as agreedby their leaders.

Ngan told her guest that with 440 million USD in investment capital, Italy isthe 32nd investor among 126 countries and territories investing inVietnam. Italian businesses have mainly engaged in industry, mechanicalmanufacturing, transport infrastructure and energy.

The two countries have engaged actively in cooperation in culture, education,science and technology, especially exchanges between universities and researchinstitutes, seeing it as a foundation for their sustainable cooperation, shesaid.

She spoke highly of Italy’s provision of ODA for climate change, health care,small and medium-sized enterprise support, and vocational training, noting thatit has met practically Vietnam’s priorities in sustainable development.

She expected that the countries would work to outline new orientations fortheir cooperation in line with the strategic partnership in the newcircumstances.

Exchanging views on the completion of procedures for the official signing ofthe European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), the Vietnamese leaderexpressed her hope that Italy and the PM will work to push for the signing andratification of the deal as it will open up new cooperative fields for bothsides.

She welcomed the initiative to organize the third high-level dialogue onItaly-ASEAN economic ties in Hanoi, expecting the event would cement the tiesbetween Italy and ASEAN countries, especially Vietnam.

PM Giuseppe Conte said he expects Vietnam, as the ASEAN Chair in 2020, wouldmake positive contributions to ASEAN and the EU.

He noted that Italy backs the EU’s signing and ratification of EVFTA andexpressed his belief that the agreement will be the key tool in ratcheting upbilateral ties, especially in economy.

He was glad with bilateral economic cooperation over recent time and said thereare more rooms for the two countries to expand their partnership in the field.-VNA