The Saigon Times Daily
Dung and his host Jean-Marc Ayrault entered formal talks in Paris on Wednesday to discuss major solutions to promote bilateral relationship, the government website chinhphu.vn reported. The two heads of government agreed to strengthen ties in areas of national defense and security, economy-trade-investment, science and technology, and education and training among others.
After the talks, the two prime ministers signed a joint communiqué on strategic partnership between the two countries, and witnessed the signing of nine agreements between the two sides.
These include a protocol on France providing finance for Can Tho General Hospital, an agreement on banking cooperation, an agreement between Vietnam’s Transport Ministry and the French corporation Vinci on marine transport development, and a deal between PetroVietnam and GDF Suez on a liquefied petroleum gas and power generation projects among others.
Speaking at a dialogue with France’s leading enterprises, Dung encouraged ministries, agencies and enterprises from both sides to discuss and exchange information to learn about potential of the two countries and set up specific cooperation and investment plans.
Dung said that Vietnam has a population of 90 million and thus a sizeable market and a strategic location in Southeast Asia. The nation has also signed a large number of free trade agreements (FTAs) with other countries.
The country is taking part in negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP), the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and a bilateral FTA with the European Union (EU) in a bid to expand market, and strengthen the supply and value chains in the region and the world.
The Vietnamese government has been trying to speed up economic reform, complete legal system, improve investment and business environment and create favorable conditions for foreign investors in the country, Dung was quoted by the government website chinhphu.vn as saying.
Vietnam has seen 13,700 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects worth over US$200 billion. The country also has had around 700 outbound projects with the total value of around US$12 billion.
Two-way trade between Vietnam and France has almost tripled in a decade, from US$1.2 billion in 2002 to over US$3.5 billion in 2012. However, the figures have yet to match the levels expected by the both sides.
Earlier, Dung while delivering a speech at the French Institute of International Relations said that the two countries will elevate the bilateral ties to strategic partnership, which is expected to open a new chapter of cooperation on the basis of sincerity, mutual trust and respect.
The bilateral cooperation will be expanded to various fields such as politics-diplomacy, economics, culture, science and technology, national defense and security.
Đăng ký: VietNam News