Hanoi (VNA) – ꦺNational Assembly (NA) Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan expressed her wish that Vietnamese and UK legislatures will exchange their legislative experience and capacity for working at the parliament, especially among young deputies.

She called on visiting Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons Eleanor Laing to continue her support for the two countries’ cooperation in science, education and training, covering an English teaching programme for Vietnamese NA deputies and officials of NA agencies. During their meeting in Hanoi on October 3, the host said the UK is now Vietnam’s big partner in Europe and across the world with two-way trade reaching 5.4 billion USD in 2015, which, however, has yet to match their potential. Given this, the top legislator said she hopes that Vietnam will step up its investments and exports to the UK. In reply, Eleanor Laing said both Vietnam and the UK have made progresses in gender equality. She cherished the bilateral cooperation across fields, especially education-training and legislative affairs. The UK wishes to boost its affiliation, particularly in trade and economy, with foreign countries, including Vietnam, she said, describing the Southeast Asian nation as her country’s important partner. Head of the UK Department for International Trade will soon visit Vietnam to discuss this issue, she informed. The UK stands ready to share its experience with Vietnam in the areas of the country’s concerns and wishes to continue carrying out the Chevening scholarship programme, among others, she said, dubbing education-training as a bridge boosting cultural links between the two countries. Regarding the East Sea issue, the guest said the UK backs the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s ruling as well as the peaceful settlement of the disputes in line with international law. The same day, Eleanor Laing was received by President the Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan who said Vietnam always attaches importance to strengthening strategic partnership with the UK. He affirmed that the UK’s decision to leave the European Union will not affect the relations between the two countries. The VFF leader suggested the two sides’ enterprises expand their investment and business links, and called on UK firms to increase their presence in Vietnam in the domains of finance, banking, infrastructure development, insurance, and science-technology, oil and gas, and aviation. The Vietnamese official asked the UK government to enhance education cooperation with Vietnam, further support the country in training high-quality human resources, and work closely with the Asian nation to effectively implement projects approved by the UK. He expressed his hope that Vietnam and UK will continue effectively cooperating in dealing with global issues like climate change and rising sea levels, as well as in realising sustainable development goals. He introduced Eleanor Laining function and task of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, emphasising the VFF’s role in promoting the great national unity. In her reply, Eleanor Laing spoke highly of the VFF in leading socio-political organisations, supervising and giving consultations to the National Assembly in lawmaking. She said she hopes her current visit will contribute to developing the strategic partnership between the countries. Vietnam will be one of the leading trade partners of the UK in the future, she affirmed.-VNA