Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phucreceived Romanian Minister for Business Environment, Commerce, andEntrepreneurship Stefan Radu Oprea in Hanoi on October 23.

Congratulating Vietnam on Party GeneralSecretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s election as State President, Oprea informed hishost about the outcomes of his working sessions with the Party CentralCommittee’s Economic Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, andseveral relevant agencies on ways to step up the two countries’ relations.

He noted that he and the Ministry of Industryand Trade shared the view that bilateral trade and economic ties boast hugepotential, agreeing to target trade revenue at 500 million USD in the nearfuture, instead of just 200 million USD at present.

The Romanian delegation has worked with relevantVietnamese agencies to enhance cooperation in agriculture, informationtechnology, Industry 4.0 technology, tourism, and investment, as well asbetween small- and medium-sized enterprises of the two countries.

Minister Oprea said Romania pledges to stronglyintensify links with Vietnam in fields matching its strength and Vietnam’sdemand, such as developing expressway infrastructure, research infrastructure,and hospitals.

His country also wants to boost labourcollaboration with the Southeast Asian nation and hopes to receive Vietnameseworkers, he added.

He noted that Romania will hold the presidencyof the European Union (EU) Council in the first half of 2019 – a good chance topromote Vietnam’s cooperation with the EU and Romania, including in the signingof the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).

At the meeting, PM Phuc applauded the twocountries’ cooperation in recent years, stressing that Vietnam has signed andwill sign 16 new-generation free trade agreements, which will open up bigopportunities for links between Vietnamese and Romanian businesses.

Valuing Romania’s advantages in manufacturingindustries, he said Vietnam has a population of about 100 million, and as suchis a great potential market for Romanian firms in all fields, from seaports andtourism, to oil and gas, and infrastructure.

The PM shared his guest’s view that bilateraltrade remains modest, adding that he hopes the two sides will raise their tradeto more than 500 million USD.

He also asked the Vietnam-RomaniaIntergovernmental Committee to devise concrete measures to strengthen bilateralrelations in all aspects, including removing barriers in terms of tax andinvestment procedures, and organising many business forums to promotepartnership between their businesses.

Vietnam has a diverse range of agriculturalproducts, PM Phuc said, calling on Romania to bolster ties to help suchproducts enter their market.

The Government leader also voiced his delight atRomania’s holding of the EU Council presidency in the first half of next year.He expressed his hope that the EU will promote the signing of the EVFTA and theInvestment Protection Agreement towards enhancing cooperation.–VNA