Nay Pyi Taw (VNA) – Deputy PrimeMinister Vuong Dinh Hue highlighted Vietnam’s wish to unceasingly developrelations with Myanmar during talks with Myanmar Vice President Myint Swe inNay Pyi Taw on June 17.

At the event, part of Hue’s working visit toMyanmar from June 16 to 18, the host congratulated Vietnam on itssocio-economic and diplomatic achievements. He spoke highly of the country’sgrowing role and stature in the region and the world, offering congratulationson its election as a non-permanent member of the United Nations SecurityCouncil for 2020-2021 with a record number of votes.

Deputy PM Hue also congratulated Myanmar on itsdevelopment and diplomatic attainments, affirming that Vietnam treasures andwishes to develop bilateral ties in a stable and long-term manner for the sakeof the two peoples and for peace, cooperation and development of ASEAN.

Discussing the countries’ relations, theofficials expressed their delight at the great strides in bilateral connectionsin all fields, from politics, security and defence to economy, trade,investment, energy and tourism.

They highly valued the recent mutualhigh-ranking visits, including a State visit to Myanmar by Party GeneralSecretary Nguyen Phu Trong in August 2017 and a trip to Vietnam to attend inthe UN Day of Vesak celebrations by President Win Myint last May.

Both sides agreed to increase high-level mutualvisits and meetings in the time ahead. They also applauded the maintenance ofbilateral cooperation mechanisms, including the successful ninth meeting of thejoint committee for bilateral cooperation in Hanoi in March.

At the talks, host and guest looked into ways topromote economic, trade and investment cooperation – an important pillar in thetwo countries’ relations, including raising bilateral trade to 1 billion USD inthe near future.

Deputy PM Hue thanked and asked the MyanmarGovernment to continue creating favourable conditions for Vietnamese firms tooperate in the country, accelerate the licensing of Vietnamese projects andprovide preferential treatment for Vietnamese investors.

The Vietnamese Government always requestsVietnamese enterprises to absolutely adhere to Myanmar’s law, activelycontribute to local socio-economic development, and carry out corporate socialresponsibility programmes, he affirmed.

The two officials also scrutinised directionsfor strengthening cooperation in other spheres such as security, defence,energy, telecommunications, agriculture and transport.

They welcomed the establishment of the defencepolicy dialogue mechanism at the deputy ministerial level in 2019 and pledgedto step up negotiations on and signing of security and judicial cooperationdocuments at appropriate points of time. The countries will also boost theimplementation of industrial tree and aquacultural development projects whileenhancing transport connectivity, via not only air transport but also road andwaterway transport.

Regarding regional issues of shared concern,they underlined the importance of maintaining peace, stability and cooperationfor common development and prosperity, along with coordinating with each otherto address common challenges to regional security, including the East Seaissue.

Vietnam and Myanmar affirmed their support forthe peaceful settlement of East Sea disputes on the basis on international law,including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

The countries vowed to support the full andeffective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in theEast Sea and efforts to soon finalise an efficient and substantive code ofconduct in the waters.

The two sides also promised to continue workingclosely with each other at regional and international forums, especially withinthe frameworks of the UN, ASEAN, the Non-Aligned Movement, along withsub-regional cooperation mechanisms like the Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-MekongEconomic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS), the Cambodia-Laos-Myanmar-Vietnam(CLMV) cooperation, the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS), and the East-WestEconomic Corridor (EWEC).

On this occasion, Deputy PM Hue invited VicePresident Myint Swe to soon pay an official visit to Vietnam.-VNA