Speaking to the press about the working trip, which is made from October 17 to 20 at the invitation of General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and President of China Xi Jinping, Permanent Deputy FM Vu said that this is the first working trip to China as well as the first multilateral foreign activity of President Vo Van Thuong in his new position.
The forum is also the first one to be held after a long period of interruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic; therefore, it is highly appreciated by China and other countries, he added.
For these reasons, President Vo Van Thuong’s attendance at the forum has great bilateral and multilateral significance, he stressed.
Multilaterally, in the context when the global economy has seen a slow recovery — pushing countries to strengthen regional and global economic linkage to promote their economic recovery — the Vietnamese state leader’s attendance at the forum demonstrates Vietnam's strong commitment to multilateralism and its activeness in strengthening regional and global economic cooperation and connectivity, Permanent Deputy FM Vu assessed.
He reported that President Vo Van Thuong will join leaders and representatives of over 140 countries and international organisations to discuss crucial issues and topics which are critical to the economic recovery process of each country and the globe such as green transformation, digital transformation, digital innovation, modern agriculture, development of small- and medium-sized enterprises and startups.
Bilaterally, President Vo Van Thuong’s working trip is highly appreciated by the leaders of the two countries. This high-level external activity takes place while Vietnam and China celebrate the 15th anniversary of their comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.
As such, President Thuong’s meetings with key Chinese leaders will help to strengthen mutual political trust, maintain the momentum of bilateral relations as well as create new opportunities for cooperation, thus contributing to developing the Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in a healthier, more stable, and more sustainable manner in the coming time, said Vu.
According to the permanent deputy minister, amidst the slowdown in global economy and globalisation, and the rise of protectionism, President Vo Van Thuong’s attendance at the forum will contribute to reinforcing the trend of strengthening regional and global economic links, especially as Vietnam has a high level of economic openness.
In addition, President Vo Van Thuong’s discussions with Chinese leaders on issues that conform with Vietnam’s development orientations such as green growth, digital economy, innovation, development of small- and medium-sized enterprises, and fighting corruption will provide Vietnam with experience and lessons to help the country take advantage of resources and expand economic cooperation.
President Vo Van Thuong’s meetings with key leaders of China and other foreign countries will also open up new cooperation opportunities for Vietnam, said Permanent Deputy FM Vu.
The diplomat said that for China, the two sides will continue to discuss measures to enhance high-level and all-level delegation exchanges; promote bilateral economic, trade, and investment relations in a more sustainable and balanced manner in the coming time; and strengthen cooperation in infrastructure, especially under the ‘Two Corridors, One Belt’ framework and Belt and Road Initiative.
This will also create very important cooperation directions for Vietnamese ministries, sectors, and localities to coordinate with Chinese partners to bring the bilateral relationship into a new development stage with higher political trust, more pragmatic cooperation, more solid social foundations, and better control of differences, he concluded.
