Hanoi (VNA) – Minister of Foreign AffairsBui Thanh Son hosted a reception in Hanoi on February 14 for former PrimeMinister of France Edouard Philippe, who is now Mayor of Le Havre city.

Son expressed his pleasure to welcome Philippe on theoccasion of the 50th founding anniversary of Vietnam-France diplomatic ties,and the 10th anniversary of strategic partnership.

He thanked the former French PM for his sentiments andsupport to Vietnam as well as the relations between the two countries in anyposition, and affirmed that Vietnam always attaches importance to and advocatesenhancing the comprehensive cooperation with the EU, including France.

For his part, Philippe, who is on a visit to Vietnamfrom February 13-16, expressed his impression on achievements Vietnam recordedacross spheres as well as the country’s strong development since his firstvisit to Vietnam as the PM of France five years ago.

The former PM said he hopes to return Vietnam to promoterelations between localities of the two countries, and the France-Vietnam strategicpartnership.

The host and guest shared the view that the strategicpartnership is developing fruitfully and practically in all areas, with highpolitical trust.

Son stressed that France is a leading European trade partner,investor and development assistance supplier of Vietnam, with two-way trade recoveringquickly after the COVID-19 pandemic, hitting 5.3 billion EUR (5.7 billion USD)in 2022, up 10% year-on-year.

He suggested the two countries optimise opportunities generatedby the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), and called on France to soonratify the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) to giveencouragement to Vietnamese and French investors.

Son also noted his hope that France will urge the EuropeanCommission (EC) to soon lift its “yellow card” imposed on Vietnam’s seafood inorder to maintain the livelihood of hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese fishermen and meet the interests of millions of European consumers.

Philippe expressed his hope to expand cooperation withVietnamese ministries, agencies and localities in the areas of Le Havre’s strengthslike seaport, shipbuilding, logistics, higher education and training for officialsand public servants.

Le Havre will attend the 12th conference oncooperation between Vietnamese and French localities in the coming time, hesaid.

The two sides also compared notes on regional andinternational issues of shared concern. Regarding the East Sea issue, they emphasisedthe importance of maintaining peace, stability, security, safety and freedom ofnavigation and aviation, and peacefully settling disputes on the basis of internationallaw, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and fully and effectively implementing the Declaration on the Conductof Parties in the East Sea (DOC), towards reaching a Code of Conduct in theEast Sea (COC)./.