Viet Nam, Denmark agree to a comprehensive partnership

President Truong Tan Sang and Denmark Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt yesterday (Sept 19) agreed to elevate bilateral ties to a comprehensive partnership.

The agreement was reached during talks between the two sides as part of Sang's visit to the northern European country.

The comprehensive partnership aims to provide a foundation for expanding bilateral co-operation in prioritised areas of foreign affairs, trade and investment, environmental sustainability, research and education, and cultural exchange.

Both sides said they were pleased at the positive development of bilateral trade and investment during the past few years, while President Sang confirmed that Viet Nam created favourable conditions for Danish enterprises to invest in his country.

Sang also urged the Danish leader to continue supporting Viet Nam's efforts in climate change, administrative reform, environmental hygiene and vocational training through official development programmes.

He praised the host government's efforts in helping Vietnamese nationals live and work in the country and providing valuable assistance.

Meanwhile, Thorning-Schmidt underscored her Government's determination to implement its Market Growth Strategy which named Viet Nam as one of 10 potential economies for the country to increase trade to US$1 billion.

The two sides also discussed important international and regional issues with Thorning-Schmidt emphasising the importance of the Asia-Pacific region and the ASEAN community in Denmark's foreign policy.

She affirmed her Government's position that disputes in the East Sea be resolved using peaceful measures and in accordance with international law.

Sang also urged Denmark to back Viet Nam's bid to strengthen its relationship with the EU and speed up the EU's approval of the Partnership and Co-operation Agreement with Viet Nam. He also request the Danish President's support in Viet Nam's negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement with the EU.

New role

Sang also pointed out that Viet Nam would be eager to foster ties between the ASEAN community and the EU and separately between ASEAN and Denmark as ASEAN-EU Co-ordinator.

Following the talks, the two leaders witnessed the signing of the Joint Statement of the Viet Nam-Denmark Comprehensive Partnership and a Memorandum of Understanding for co-operation in developing wind power, water management, education and sustainable seafood farming.

Sang also met with Danish Parliament Speaker Morgens Lykketoft on the same day, where Sang applauded close co-operation between the two parliaments through high-ranking delegations and specialized committees.

Sang also lobbied for the Danish parliament to continue the provision of official development assistance (ODA) to Viet Nam in areas such as renewable energy, environmental protection and food safety, while the Danish Speaker praised Viet Nam's efficient use of ODA.

The two leaders agreed that elevating the relationship would be a driving force for strengthening bilateral co-operation more efficiently.

The Vatican seeks to reinforce ties with Vietnam

The Holy See has expressed its desire to further the relations with Vietnam and urged Vietnamese parishioners to respect and abide by the country’s policies and laws.

Vietnamese officials works with Under-Secretary for Relations with States Antoine Camilleri (Source: VNA)

The remarks came from working sessions between Under-Secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples Tadeusz Wojda and Under-Secretary for Relations with States Antoine Camilleri of the Vatican and officials of the Vietnamese Government’s Committee for Religious Affairs.

The Vietnamese officials, headed by Deputy Minister of Home Affairs and Head of the Committee for Religious Affairs Pham Dung, are currently on a six-day working visit to the Vatican from September 15.

At the functions, the two sides went through the progress in Vietnam-Vatican relations and exchanged views on issues of mutual concern.

The Vietnamese side reiterated that Vietnam has consistently pursued a religious policy that ensures people’s freedom to religions and beliefs, and disapproved the corrupt use of the issue to cause social instability and harm the common interest of the Catholic community and the nation.

The Vietnamese Government will always support and create all possible conditions for religious organisations in the country, they told the Vatican officials.

The Government hopes that all Vietnamese parishioners will take specific actions for the sake of both nation and their faith and follow Pope Benedict XVI’s words which say that a good Catholic is a good citizen, they added.

The Vatican side, for their part, valued progress made in its relations with Vietnam as well as the Vietnamese Government’s attention and support to activities of the Vietnam Catholic Church in the past time, including pastoral visits of the Vatican’s non-resident Special Envoy to Vietnam, Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli.

They said both sides need to firmly maintain their dialogue via the Vatican’s non-resident special envoy to Vietnam while pledging that the Holy See will exert every effort to work with the Vietnamese Government in solving existing problems in order to boost their ties.

During the working visit to September 20, the Vietnamese delegation also attended a general meeting with Pope Francis and visited the Vatican Radio.

Hai Phong ‘gateway to north' says Party

Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong has urged northern port city Hai Phong to make full use of its strength as the north's gateway to the sea.

Trong called on the city to develop its seaport, services, tourism industry and logistics as part of a concerted effort to spearhead local development.

The party leader was speaking at a working session yesterday between the Party Politburo and the Standing Board of Hai Phong Municipal Party Committee to review the region's progress towards modernisation and industrialisation over the past 10 years.

Reporting to the Poliburo, municipal Party Committee Secretary Nguyen Van Thanh said since starting the resolution implementation, the city's economy had been growing relatively fast. From 2003 to 2012, its GDP rose by an average of 11 per cent per year. Services and industry sectors contributed 90 per cent of the economic growth.

GDP per capita in 2012 reached US$2,064, nearly three times the figure from 2002.

As the main route to the sea for northern provinces, the volume of commodities traded through the city's ports surged from 13 million tones in 2003 to 48.8 million tones in 2012.

By 2020, Hai Phong aimed to become a modern port city, the country's key centre for marine economy development, plus a centre of education, training and health care for the northern coastal provinces, Thanh added.

Development of seaports and airports would be a driving force for the city to become a large services and industry centre, growing at a rapid yet sustainable pace, he said.

After hearing the report, Trong recognised the city's achievements over the past 10 years, saying the results would create firm foundations for Hai Phong to continue developing in the future.

However, the economic growth was neither strong enough nor sustainable, he said.

"Hai Phong should closely follow the directions outlined in the resolutions of the 11th Party Congress which requires economic restructuring in combination with renovating the growth model, as well as rapid but sustainable development and a shift towards in-depth development," the Party leader said.

He reminded Hai Phong to continue maintaining political stability, social safety and order, while actively preventing and thwarting sabotage plans from hostile forces, because the city is strategically placed in terms of national defence-security.

In addition, the Party leader urged the city to pay attention to strengthening Party organisation and the political system, thus creating concerted strength for socio-economic development.

Vietnam condemns chemical weapon use

Vietnam strongly condemns the use of chemical weapons to kill civilians and stresses the need to abide by the international convention on the chemical weapons.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Luong Thanh Nghi made the statement during a regular press conference in Hanoi on September 19, reiterating Vietnam’s persistent and clear stance on the matter.

Vietnam welcomes the September 14, 2013 Russia-US framework agreement on the destruction of Syria’s chemical arsenal, the official said, adding that the country hopes the sides concerned will seriously implement the agreement, thus helping solve the ongoing crisis in Syria and bring peace and stability back to the Syrian people at an early date.

NA proposes ASEAN green-growth centre

National Assembly Vice Chairwoman Tong Thi Phong yesterday (Sept 19) affirmed Viet Nam will continue making practical contributions to strengthening AIPA's role in building a peaceful, cooperative and prosperous ASEAN community.

Making the statement at the first plenary session of the General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) in Brunei, Phong said the Vietnamese legislature would work with the Government to overhaul the economy, enhance the legal system and strengthen the business environment.

Calling for AIPA to further assist ASEAN in promoting diplomacy, security, and sustainable economic and social development; Phong also urged for concrete and practical recommendations to remove barriers and harmonise domestic laws with regional aims.

The Vietnamese delegation proposed establishing an ASEAN ‘green growth centre'; a regional cooperation mechanism to help member countries share expertise in sustainable growth and sharpen responses to climate change.

AIPA plan

Participants unanimously agreed that their legislative bodies would cooperate with the ASEAN community to build the regional Community by 2015. They also adopted the AIPA's agenda and action plan.

Themed The role of AIPA in realising the ASEAN Community, this year's event attracted delegates from member countries including Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar and the Philippines. Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam were also present, as were observer states such as Japan, Canada, China and Russia.

Hanoi reaffirms to foster ties with ASEAN nations’ capitals

Hanoi pledges to actively bolster its comprehensive cooperation with capitals of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states, helping to accelerate the formation of the ASEAN Community by 2015.

Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen Van Suu made the commitment while attending the Meeting of the Governors/Mayors of the Capitals of ASEAN, which concluded in Jakarta, Indonesia, on September 19.

He said that the capital city plays an important role in Vietnam’s construction of the ASEAN Community.

It has coordinated with relevant agencies to successfully organise a number of ASEAN’s significant events in Hanoi, and always attaches importance to developing multifaceted cooperation with cities, particularly capitals in the region, he added.

Participants issued a joint statement saying the capital authorities support ASEAN’s policies and programmes, and vow to be more active in the integration and construction of the ASEAN Community and intensify their coordination.

During the two-day function, mayors also discussed measures to deal with urbanisation challenges, and enhance managerial capacity and competitiveness. Participants also heard possible impacts of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) on local people.

Mayors/ Governors also agreed that the municipal authorities need to brace for potential changes when the ASEAN Community with three pillars, namely politics-security, culture-society and economics is going to takes into effect by 2015.

Hanoi’s high-ranking delegation visits New Zealand

A Vietnamese delegation led by Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Pham Quang Nghi visited New Zealand from September 17-20.

During the visit, Nghi met with high-ranking officials of New Zealand and Wellington city, during which he spoke highly of the fine relations between the two countries, especially in trade, tourism and education-training.

During his working session with Speaker of the NZ House of Representatives Lockwood Smith on September 18, he underscored the prospects for closer cooperation in these fields.

Vietnam, Nghi said, holds advantages in agricultural, aquatic and wooden products, garment, and handicrafts, he said, adding that the NZ Government’s opening its commercial gate will make more Vietnamese products enter this market, which will not only help meet the demand by consumers but also boost the two countries’ bilateral trade.

He asked New Zealand to increase its scholarships to Vietnamese students as a way to further the two countries’ education ties.

At a meeting with the Vietnam-NZ Friendship Parliamentarians’ Group, Nghi highly valued its contributions to deepening the bilateral relationship.

The same day, he also held a working session with Wellington city Council, during which both sides exchanged experience in building and managing urban areas, dealing with earthquakes and developing economy and education.

He expressed his hope for a closer coordination from experts of New Zealand and the city in the construction planning of the Vietnamese capital approved by the Prime Minister.

On these occasions, Nghi thanked the NZ Government for creating favourable conditions for the Vietnamese community in the country to stabilize their lives, contributing to developing the two nations’ relations.

Vietnam, Cuba enhance economic cooperation

The 31 st meeting of the Vietnam-Cuba Inter-governmental Committee for Economic, Commercial, Scientific and Technological Cooperation wrapped up in Hanoi on September 19 after three days of sitting.

In his closing speech, Construction Minister Trinh Dinh Dung, co-chairman of the committee, said the two sides agreed to sign a minutes of the meeting, which states that results reached during the event show both sides’ determination and efforts to promote cooperation in economics, trade, culture, education, science and technology, thus bringing practical benefits to their peoples.

These will also be legal basis for both sides to effectively implement cooperation programmes and projects that were agreed by them, he stressed.

For his part, Cuban Minister of Foreign Trade and Investment Rodrigo Malmierca Diaz, who is also co-chairman of the committee, spoke highly of efforts and achievements made by Vietnamese and Cuban experts in implementing the previous meeting’s minutes, focusing on remaining problems and solutions to them.

The two sides have defined feasible cooperation contents for the 2013-2014 period as well as potential cooperation projects of the medium-term bilateral economic agenda, he said.

On the occasion, Rodrigo introduced a workshop on investment in infrastructure development in Cuba to Vietnamese enterprises.

The Cuban Minister said he hopes that after the workshop, Vietnamese businesses will pay more attention to cooperation opportunities in Cuba.

The 31 st meeting focused discussions on the fields of biotechnology and health, trade, science and technology, contributing to fostering economic cooperation between Vietnam and Cuba in order to meet the aspiration of the two countries’ people.

VNN/VOV/VNS/VNA