PM meets with Singaporean, Sri Lanka PMs

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc receives Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong, Ha Noi, September 12, 2018

The Vietnamese leader highly appreciated PM Lee’s presence at the WEF ASEAN 2018, which demonstrates Singapore’s role and responsibility as chair of ASEAN in 2018.

The two PMs highlighted the close bonds and regular meetings and sharing between the two sides’ leaders, contributing to developing the Viet Nam-Singapore strategic partnership in a stable, substantive and effective fashion.

PM Phuc spoke highly of Singapore’s economic and science-technology achievements, calling on the country to assist Viet Nam in digital application in governance, urbanization, technology transfer, infrastructure development, software park development, and the establishment of startup centers.

PM Lee Hsien Loong welcomed Viet Nam’s big cities, such as Ha Noi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang, joining the ASEAN Smart Cities Network, aiming to bring into full play their potential and advantages, towards making them become the leading municipalities in the region.

The two sides agreed to continue supporting their business communities to expand investment and business activities in each other’s country, while vowing to create safe, transparent and stable policy frameworks and remove enterprises’ obstacles and proposals in a timely manner, aiming to unceasingly increase the two-way trade and investment revenues.

Discussing regional and international issues, the two leaders pledged closer coordination and cooperation within ASEAN aiming to concretize the spirit of self-reliance and innovation, and promote solidarity, consensus and the role of ASEAN.

They also agreed to maintain ASEAN’s principles in the important issues related to regional peace, security and stability, including the East Sea issue, while ensuring maritime and aviation security, safety and freedom, as well as compliance with international law.

The PMs pledged to facilitate the positive momentum of trade liberalization and regional economic linkages at present, and work with other countries to promptly finalize the negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc receives Sri Lankan counterpart Ranil Wickremesinghe

Early, PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc received Sri Lankan counterpart Ranil Wickremesinghe. 

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his Sri Lankan counterpart Ranil Wickremesinghe said despite positive progress, bilateral cooperation across the fields has yet to match the two countries’ potential. They reached a consensus that the second meeting of the joint trade sub-committee should be held as early as possible in Vietnam to seek ways to bolster trade. 

The two government leaders also shared the view that the joint committee should hold the fourth meeting in 2019 and the two countries should sign an MoU on fishery cooperation for the next three years. 

They agreed to facilitate the expansion of partnership in fields of potential for cooperation such as education-training, telecommunications, information and digital technology, oil and gas, aviation, maritime, processing of agricultural and aquatic products, cultural and art exchange, Buddhism, sports, and youth exchange. 

PM Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is in Viet Nam to attend the World Economic Forum on ASEAN 2018, praised the accomplishments that Viet Nam has made in socio-economic development in the past years and the country’s increasing role in the region and the world, saying that Viet Nam is a model of socio-economic development for other countries. 

He expressed the wish to set up ties between the ruling party in Sri Lanka and the Communist Party of Viet Nam, while affirming the intention to continue working closely with Viet Nam at regional and international forums, especially the United Nations and the Non-aligned Movement.

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc stressed that the two countries should pay attention to aviation connection, which he said is the most effective way to develop trade and tourism.

He asked Sri Lanka to play an active role in ensuring security, safety and freedom of navigation and aviation in the East Sea and advocating the adherence to international law and the settlement ofdisputes by peaceful means.

The two sides have agreed to strive to bring two-way trade to US$1 billion.

                                                                                                                    By Vien Nhu