Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc haslauded outgoing Australian Ambassador Craig Chittick for contributions duringhis three-year tenure in Vietnam with two-way trade up by nearly 17 percenteach year.

During a reception in Hanoi on June 25, the PM said theambassador has actively pushed forward bilateral ties in diverse areas, notonly in politics, diplomacy, economy, national defence-security but alsoe-government and personnel training.

He wished that both sides would continue working closelytogether at multilateral forums.

The host also spoke highly of Australia’s provision ofofficial development assistance (ODA) for Vietnam, saying that it has been usedeffectively across the country, contributing to national development.


According to him, both sides need to take practical steps tofurther facilitate bilateral trade and investment, tap multilateral agreementsto which they are members, particularly within the framework of Comprehensiveand Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, and continue enhancingeducation ties and people-to-people exchange, especially among younggenerations.

He hoped that Australia will continue providing ODA for Vietnam,especially in key areas.

On the occasion, he conveyed his invitation to Australian PMto visit Vietnam to discuss measures to further deepen bilateral ties.

Chittick, for his part, said he visited 35 cities andprovinces during his tenure and was proud to partly contribute to Vietnam’ssuccess.

He added that Australian PM Scott Morrison told him that hebelieves in bilateral partnership and wants to make a hallmark for it.

About ODA supply, the guest said Australia will makeadjustments to assist Vietnam in e-government building and personnel trainingin the near future.-VNA