Hanoi (VNA) – Minister of Foreign AffairsBui Thanh Son talked over phone with his Omani counterpart Sayyid Badr binHamad bin Hamood Al Busaidi on June 22 after Vietnam and Oman celebrated the 30th anniversary of their diplomatic ties (June 9).

Son highly valued remarkable developments incooperation between the two countries over the past three decades in politics,diplomacy, economy and trade, saying they have maintained delegation exchangesand mutual support at international forums, and in natural disaster responseand the COVID-19 fight.

He viewed economic cooperation as a bright spot inthe bilateral ties, with two-way trade hitting 338.1 million USD last year,nearly doubling the figure in the previous year.

The Vietnam-Oman Investment (VOI) fund has operatedeffectively, with an array of projects rolled out in essential fields inVietnam like water management, agriculture, health care and renewable energy,the minister continued.

For his part, the Omani minister lauded achievementsVietnam has recorded in politics, external relations, economy and socialaffairs, and affirmed that Oman always attaches importance to promoting itsmulti-faceted cooperation with the Southeast Asian nation.

The two ministers shared the view that there isstill ample room for the bilateral cooperation, especially in economy, trade,investment, labour, agriculture, fishery and seaports.

Regarding measures to consolidate and improve the efficiencyof cooperation, they said Vietnam and Oman should step up the exchange ofdelegations at all levels, particularly the high-level one, continue theirclose coordination at international forums and organisations, and maintain theexisting cooperation mechanisms such as the inter-governmental committee andpolitical consultation between the two foreign ministries.

To create breakthroughs in economic collaboration,the ministers stressed that the two countries need to coordinate in trade andinvestment promotion, increase information exchange and business connectivity, andspeed up negotiations of major cooperation agreements to consolidate the legalframework for the bilateral cooperation.

Son used the occasion to invite the Omani ministerto visit Vietnam, and the latter accepted the invitation with pleasure.

The same day, Son hosted a reception for AbdulnasserAlshaali, Assistant Minister for Economic and Trade Affairs at Ministry ofForeign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates (UAE)in Hanoi.

The Vietnamese minister noted with pleasure therapid and strong developments in the bilateral relations, especially ineconomy, trade and investment.

He affirmed the importance Vietnam attaches to thefriendship and multi-faceted cooperation with the UAE, one of its leadingtrade, investment and labour partners in the Middle East.

The minister urged the two sides to enhanceall-level delegation exchanges and soon organise the second political consultationbetween the two foreign ministries, while taking specific measures to fostercollaboration, particularly in economy, trade and investment.

Son highlighted the initiative to establish a jointbusiness council with the participation of state management agencies andenterprises of both sides.

Vietnam will create optimal conditions for UAE firmsto seek and join business and investment projects in the Southeast Asian nation,he said, calling on them to increase investments in agriculture.

The minister suggested accelerating thenegotiations and signing of cooperation documents in finance and banking tocreate a legal corridor for bilateral collaboration.

Speaking highly of Vietnam’s achievements innational construction and development, Abdulnasser Al Shaali emphasised that theUAE attaches importance to the country’s role and influence in Asia-Pacific.

The UAE wishes to boost multi-faceted cooperationwith Vietnam, particularly in economy, push ahead with the establishment of thebusiness council as well as the negotiations and signing of a bilateral freetrade agreement, and utilise the UAE’s existing preferential policies to bringVietnamese goods to the Middle East and Africa, he said.

The UAE also wishes to forge cooperation with theAssociation of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), he added.

Earlier the same day, Abdulnasser Al Shaali heldtalks with Assistant to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Hang,during which they agreed on orientations and measures to beef up the bilateralties in the time ahead.

On this occasion, the two sides held a roundtable seminarthat brought together many UAE businesses operating in transport, finance,investment, education and energy.

Last year, despite difficulties caused by theCOVID-19 pandemic, the two-way trade reached 5.3 billion USD, up 21percent year-on-year./.