Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh holds phone talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang on April 4. (Photo: VNA) The leaders consented to step up exchanges, coordinationand efforts to advance the bilateral relations to a new development period, pledging to will direct ministries and localities in their respective countries to realise majorcommon perceptions reached by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and PartyGeneral Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping, particularly the jointstatement on continuing to enhance and deepen the Vietnam-China comprehensivestrategic cooperative partnership issued in November 2022.
The two sides will also increase all-level contactsand strengthen cooperation in various fields, especially in economy and tradelinks, while intensifying friendship between localities and people's organisations.
They will maintain the friendly cooperationmechanism between the ministries of national defence, and the ministries of publicsecurity of the two countries, continue to implement the three legal documentson land border issues, timely discuss and handle emerging issues in joint efforts to build a shared border of peace, stability, cooperation and development.
PM Chinh suggested the two sides actively studymeasures to maintain smooth trade, raise the capacity and efficiency of customsclearance, and strengthen connectivity of road, rail, sea, and airinfrastructure.
He also proposed China continue facilitating trade,expand the import of goods, accelerate market opening for Vietnameseagricultural products, increase the quota for Vietnamese goods transitingthrough its railway to a third country and create favourable conditions forVietnam to open more trade promotion offices in China.
The Vietnamese PM welcomed China’s investment in large-scale,high-quality, and new technology projects in Vietnam, saying the two sides shouldwork harder to remove prolonged problems in some cooperation projects such asthe second-phase expansion of the Thai Nguyen iron and steel plant, effectivelycooperate in tourism and make greater efforts to promote people-to-people cooperation and exchanges.
PM Li expressed his appreciation and agreement withPM Chinh's suggestions regarding cooperationareas, and affirmed that China supports Vietnam's cause of national industrialisationand modernisation, and raising of its international role.
China stands ready to open its market to Vietnamesegoods, especially agricultural products, and to cooperate with Vietnam inresolving the stagnant cooperation projects, the Chinese government leader said.
He suggested the two sides strengthen strategic connectivityand assist each other in transport infrastructure connectivity, foster cooperationin economy, trade and investment, particularly in manufacturing andagriculture, and work together to maintain supply and production chains.
Li also affirmed that China will promote people-to-people exchange, facilitate travel of citizens of the two countries, and restoretourism cooperation.
Both noted with pleasure positive developments in the relationsbetween the two Parties and countries over the recent past, especially after the visitto China by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong in late October 2022, andshared the view that the relations are entering a new development phase withmany opportunities and advantages.
PM Chinh congratulated the Chinese side on the successesof the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in October2022 and the first session of the 14th National People's Congress in March 2023,and congratulated Li on his election as Premier of the StateCouncil of China.
He wished China greater successes in the journey to build a modern socialistcountry that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmoniousand beautiful, with an increasingly high international status and active contributionsto peace, cooperation, and development in the region and the world.
Both held that the traditional friendship that is both"comradeship and brotherhood" between Vietnam and China, founded andnurtured by President Ho Chi Minh, Chairman Mao Zedong, and generations ofleaders of the two countries, is a precious asset shared by the two Parties andtwo countries, and it needs to be constantly inherited, protected, and promoted.
They stressed the importance of the bilateralrelationship for the development of each country as well as for peace,stability, cooperation, and development in the region and the world at large.
Regarding maritime issues, both sides concurred tomake joint efforts to maintain peace and stability, and settle the issuessatisfactorily in the spirit of high-level common perceptions and the Agreementon basic principles guiding the settlement of sea-related issues betweenVietnam and China.
PM Chinh stressed that the two sides should effectively utilisenegotiation mechanisms on demarcation and cooperation at sea, strive for progressin a step-by-step manner, settle disputes and disagreements through peacefulmeans in accordance with international law, especially the 1982 United NationsConvention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), fully and effectively implement theDeclaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), and strive tobuild a substantive, effective Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) in linewith international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS./.
VNA
