Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam and Belgium are preparing for upcoming visits,notably the Belgium visit by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in the thirdquarter of this year in the context of the nations celebrating the 45th anniversary of their diplomatic ties, stated newly-accredited VietnameseAmbassador to Belgium Vu Anh Quang.

He also detailed other visits scheduled to take place in celebration of theanniversary, saying Geert Albert Bourgeois, Minister-President of Flanders ofBelgium, will visit Vietnam in May and attend several trade and investmentpromotion activities in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Hai Phong city.

In addition, trade and investment promotion activities and cultural exchangeprogrammes will be held in both Vietnam and Belgium throughout the year, hesaid, adding that a Vietnamese Culture Week is set to take place in Belgium inthe third quarter.

In the meantime, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuongis in the European country to seek to increase cooperation in agriculture, thediplomat said in an interview granted to Vietnam News Agency occasioned the nations’celebration of the 45th anniversary of their diplomatic ties.

He expressed his delight at the development of bilateral cooperation since tieswere set up in 1973.

Thetwo countries have held high-level meetings and visits regularly, whilesupporting each other at international forums.

Economicand trade cooperation has played a key role in bilateral ties. In 2017, two-waytrade reached nearly 2.5 billion USD. Belgium is currently running more than 60projects worth about 600 million USD in Vietnam.

Connectivitybetween the two countries’ localities has been expanded in numerous fields,ranging from education and training, agriculture, cultural heritagepreservation, to climate change and clean energy.

Theambassador said that Vietnam and Belgium have opportunities to lift theirrelations to a new height this year as they are celebrating their 45th anniversary of diplomatic ties.

The agencies of the two countries are working on the upgrade of bilateral tiesto strategic partnership in some specific sectors and fields, he noted, adding thatthe European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), once signed andratified, will open up more opportunities for Vietnamese and Belgian businessesto intensify links and cooperation.

Thiswill help increase Belgium’s investment in Vietnam, especially in fields ofBelgium’s strength such as shipbuilding, agriculture, high technology and cleanenergy, contributing to promoting Vietnam’s green and sustainable growth.

Thediplomat said that the two countries’ goods, especially agricultural products, donot compete, but complement to each other, an advantage for the two countriesto strengthen collaboration in trade and investment intensively.-VNA