Hanoi (VNA)– Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his Nepalese counterpart K P Sharma Oliwere glad that cooperative documents have been signed between Vietnam and Nepal, serving as a foundation for their cooperation to be expanded anddeepened in the future.

The leaders held talks in Hanoi on May 11 during the official visit to Vietnamby the Nepalese Prime Minister and his spouse from May 9-13.

The documents signed during the visit included an agreement on visa exemption for official anddiplomatic passport holders between the two governments; a memorandum ofunderstanding on the establishment of a bilateral consultation mechanismbetween the two foreign ministries’ and a letter of intent on the negotiationand signing of a framework agreement on trade and investment cooperationbetween the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry ofIndustry, Commerce and Supplies of Nepal.

PM Phuc warmly welcomed PM Sharma Oli on the first official visit of a Nepaleseleader to Vietnam since the two countries set up diplomatic ties in 1975,describing the visit a vivid manifestation of the developing traditionalfriendship between the two countries.

PM Sharma Oli expressed his joy about the visit to Vietnam visit, as thecountry is his first destination in Southeast Asia since he took the office inFebruary 2018. He spoke highly of immense socio-economic and diplomaticachievements made by Vietnam and invited PM Phuc to soon visit Nepal.

The two PMs discussedjoint visions to deepen the traditional friendship, agreeing to boost theexchange of high-level visits and meetings, and people-to-people activities,and work together to organize practical activities to celebrate the 45th anniversary of diplomatic ties in 2020.

They reachedconsensus on broadening the relations between the Communist Party of Vietnamand the Nepal Communist Party in the coming time.

While hailing the outcomes of the Vietnam-Nepal Business Forum held on May 10,PM Phuc shared with his Nepalese counterpart that bilateral economic ties haveyet to tap the respective countries’ potential and strength. Both said theywill assign competent ministries and sectors to study new cooperative and result-orientedmechanisms on economics, trade and investment, and encourage businesspeople toresearch the respective markets and launch partnerships.

PM Phuc suggested Nepal assist Vietnamese investors seeking opportunities inthe country, especially those who are interested in energy, infrastructure andtelecommunications. For his part, PM Sharma Oli asked Vietnam to facilitate theentry of Nepalese goods in the country.

They said agriculture is a field with development potential and agreed toconsider proposals to open market for respective farm produce, especially rice,black pepper, rubber, and tropical fruits along with boosting the exchange ofinformation, expanding cooperation in hi-tech agriculture and exchangingagricultural experts.

They also agreed to step up exchanges and cooperation in culture, tourism,people-to-people exchange, science-technology, information-communications,aviation, security, logistics and the fight against disaster catastrophe.

The Vietnamese side agreed to speed up the establishment of the Vietnam-NepalFriendship Association.

PM Phuc expected the Nepalese Government to continue supporting Vietnamesepeople living and working in its country so they would work as a bridge for thetwo countries’ ties.

The leaders shared views on regional and international issues of mutualconcerns, asserting to work closely and support each other at multilateralforums, especially at the United Nations.

PM Phuc took the occasion to thank Nepal for backing Vietnam’s run for anon-permanent member seat in the United Nations Security Council for2020-2021.-VNA