Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and their spouses pose for a photo (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) ꦺ– President Vo Van Thuong held talks with visiting German President Frank-WalterSteinmeier in Hanoi on January 23 following a welcome ceremony featuring a resounding 21-gun salute.
President Thuong conveyed his belief that the visit would significantly contribute tofortifying the friendship and political trust shared between the two nations, creating a driving force for the bilateralstrategic partnership and for the benefit of their people.
He affirmed that in its foreign policy of independence, self-reliance,multilateralisation and diversification of external relations, Vietnam alwaysvalues and prioritises the development of relations with Germany.
President Steinmeier expressed a desire to elevate all-around cooperation withVietnam, especially in trade and investment, energy transition, labour andvocational training, and development cooperation while working closely togetherto contribute to peace and global and regional cooperation issues.
Both leaders expressed satisfaction with the robust development of the Vietnam-Germany relationship over the past nearly five decades, particularly after they established a strategic partnership. Mutual political trust has been enhanced through the exchange of all-level delegations and coordination at multilateral forums. Germany has been the leading economic partner of Vietnam in Europe and Vietnam is one of Germany's major trade partners in Southeast Asia. Bilateral trade has tripled in the past decade to reach around 12 billion USD in 2023, and Germany is the fourth largest EU investor in Vietnam.
The two sides agreed to further strengthen political trust through the exchange of delegations at various levels and the effectiveimplementation of bilateral cooperation mechanisms, including the strategic dialogue, theJoint Committee on Economic Cooperation, the Government Consultation onDevelopment Cooperation; as well as the Vietnam-Germany strategic action planfor the 2023-2025 period.
The leaders rejoiced at the positive results in education-trainingcoordination, particularly the effective operation of the Vietnam-Germany University (VGU). The German President wished for continued collaboration to ensure thefurther success of the VGU, particularly inattracting more Vietnamese students, while President Thuong asked Germany to continue helping Vietnam in the training of high-quality human resources and the expansion of the VGU's activities.
✃ Regarding economic cooperation, the two sides pledged to continue to fully andeffectively implement the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) andfacilitate market access for each other's strong products. PresidentSteinmeier lauded Vietnam as a reliable economic partner and expressed a desireto enhance economic ties, particularly in terms of investment.
The host urged Germany to expedite the ratification procedures for theEU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) and push the early removal of the EuropeanCommission (EC)'s yellow card warning on Vietnamese seafood.He also sought Germany's continued support through official development assistance (ODA) in energy, environment, and vocational training.
Mentioning climate change response, Steinmeier affirmed Germany's readiness toassist Vietnam through technology,experts, and financial assistance within the framework of the Joint Energy TransitionPartnership (JETP), thus helping Vietnam fulfill its commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, asannounced at the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties(COP26).
Host and guest also agreed to beef up joint work in nationaldefence-security, sci-tech, justice, agriculture and cultural exchange, towardthe 50th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties in 2025.
꧂ President Thuong proposed that Germany continue to care for andsupport the Vietnamese community in the country, a sentiment affirmed by PresidentSteinmeier, who recognised the community's successful integration and positivecontributions to the host society.
At the talks (Photo: VNA)
On the internationalfront, the two countries will coordinate and support each other at regional andmultilateral forums, such as ASEAN-Germany, ASEAN-EU cooperation, and theUnited Nations frameworks.
On the East Sea issue,the two leaders reiterated the importance of maintaining peace, stability andfreedom of navigation and overflight in the East Sea, and settling disputesthrough peaceful means in accordance with international law, especially the 1982United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). They expressedsupport for substantive and effective negotiations on a Code of Conduct inthe East Sea (COC) between ASEAN and China.
🐻 Following the talks, the two Presidents witnessed the signing of an agreement on migrant labour cooperationbetween the Vietnamese Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and the German Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs./.
