The two Presidents told the press about what they had discussed and achieved during their talks in Hanoi on November 7, which were held following a welcome ceremony at the Presidential Palace.
President Michael D. Higgins and his spouse, Sabina Higgins, are on a state visit to Vietnam from November 5-14.
At the press conference, President Quang said he and his Irish counterpart shared the view that Vietnam and Ireland held great potential for co-operation in areas of mutual interest, like trade and investment, education and training, green technology, agriculture, healthcare and sustainable development.
Economically, both agreed to create favourable conditions and encourage the two countries’ businesses to set up their partnerships and transfer technologies to each other, particularly in renewable energies, agriculture and food processing, aviation, healthcare, information and communications, he said.
Education and training were agreed to be the key area of the two countries’ co-operation, he said, adding that the leaders welcomed the signing of cooperation agreements by their countries’ education ministries and institutions of higher education during the visit, helping facilitate the implementation of specific joint programmes and projects in the coming time.
President Quang thanked the Irish Government for considering Vietnam a priority partner in its development co-operation policy, its official development assistance to the country during the 2017-2020 period, and its support for Vietnam in realising the UN’s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
Sharing hope for enhanced solidarity, friendship and mutual understanding between their citizens, Vietnam and Ireland agreed to effectively collaborate on child adoption, to increase cultural and art exchanges and to promote the bridging role played by the Vietnamese in Ireland, contributing to strengthening the bilateral affiliation in other realms.
The Presidents reached a consensus on the need to maintain peace and security to and boost cooperation and development in the world.
Vietnam and Ireland also agreed to continue their close co-ordination at international forums like the UN and the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) and within the framework of ASEAN-EU co-operation in order to address global issues such as climate change and actualise the MDGs for a green, clean, peaceful and better world, President Quang said.
Regarding the East Sea issue, the host said he and his guest shared the view that the disputes should be handled by peaceful means in line with international law, especially the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
For his part, President Higgins said their talks touched upon a range of areas for cooperation, both bilaterally and multilaterally.
They were also unanimous on how to reach their shared objectives, bilaterally and multilaterally, in order to fulfil their obligations to the international community.
Higgins said he and his Vietnamese counterpart had talked about migration as well as well as its global impact, the affiliation in multilateral institutions like the UN Arms Trade Treaty, and their support for each other’s candidacies for non-permanent seats on the UN Security Council.
The Irish President stressed that the two sides had exchanged information about each country’s economic situation and discussed ways to make Ireland a bridge with which for Vietnam to access the EU and Vietnam as a springboard with which for Ireland to enter the nearly 600-million-strong ASEAN market.
He appreciated the contributions of the Vietnamese in Ireland and the Irish community in the Southeast Asian nation.
The leaders said they hoped that the young people of the two countries’ would contribute to peace in the world.
Higgins used the occasion to invite President Tran Dai Quang and his spouse to pay a visit to Ireland soon.
At the end of their talks, the Presidents witnessed the signing of several agreements on development co-operation and collaboration on education and training, wind power, information technology, telecommunications and medical equipment.
Vietnam and Ireland have made strides in co-operation since their diplomatic relationship was set up on April 5, 1996. They have regularly exchanged high-ranking delegations and co-ordinated at international forums.
Bilateral trade reached US$402 million in 2015, up 28% from the previous year. It hit US$798 million in the first nine months of 2016, rising three-fold year on year, including US$82 million of Vietnamese exports.
Vietnam mainly ships timber and wood products, footwear and garments to Ireland while importing medicinal materials, computers and electronic components.
Ireland currently has seventeen investment projects with a combined capital of US$20.7 million in Vietnam, ranking 67th among the 115 countries and territories investing here.
Vietnam is the only Asian nation among the nine priority recipients of Ireland’s development assistance. Ireland gave US$150 million in non-refundable aid to Vietnam between 2007 and 2016, focusing on poverty reduction, support for vulnerable groups and improving economic management.
