National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan has suggested the Swedish side continue supporting Vietnam in realising millennium development goals (MDGs) and enhance cooperation with the country in trade, education-training, science-technology and health care. 

National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan (R) and Swedish Ambassador to Vietnam Pereric Hogberg

During a reception for Swedish Ambassador to Vietnam Pereric Hogberg in Hanoi on February 17, the top legislator highlighted the fruitful development of the traditional friendship and cooperation between the two countries.

She thanked the country for its valuable assistance to Vietnam, especially helping Vietnam foster international integration and connect with international financial and monetary institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. 

NA Chairwoman Ngan applauded the Swedish Government’s activities to encourage and support Swedish enterprises’ investment and business in Vietnam, affirming that Sweden is one of Vietnam’s important trade partners in Europe and the Northwest Europe. 

She also appreciated Sweden for its provision of non-refundable aid for Vietnam, focusing on the fields of health care, economic and administrative reform, institutional building, law-building, human resources development, environmental protection and climate change response. 

Lauding Sweden’s proposal to establish bilateral strategic partnerships in education-training and biotechnology, she urged the ambassador to work closely with Vietnam’s ministries, sectors and partners to realise the initiative. 

The Vietnamese State and NA will create favourable conditions for the diplomat to complete his duties, Ngan stated, expressing her hope that the ambassador will do his best to promote the relations between the two countries as well as their legislative bodies. 

For his part, Pereric Hogberg concurred with the host’s suggestion on hastening the EU to approve and sign a free trade agreement with Vietnam in 2017 and recognise the country’s market economy. 

He believed that the trade deal will also contribute to boosting Vietnam-EU economic links and those between the two nations in the coming time. 

Earlier the same day, the NA Chairwoman received Hungarian Ambassador to Vietnam Ory Csaba. She suggested the two sides enhance the exchange of all-level visits to share experience in legislative activities and discuss international and regional issues of common concern. 

Vietnam always remembers valuable and effective assistance provided by Hungary’s State and people for its national defence and construction, she said. 

The host spoke highly of the two Governments’ efforts in accelerating the completion of procedures for the signing of a framework agreement on credit cooperation between the two sides in January this year. 

She believed that the two countries’ ministries and sectors will reach a consensus on the list of projects using preferential credits worth 440 million EUR pledged by Hungary in the framework of the agreement. 

Ory Csaba said his country is willing to share lawmaking experience with Vietnam, thus further bolstering cooperation between the two countries’ legislatures. 

The two sides underlined the significance of a Hungarian-funded oncology hospital project in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho, which helps better the locality’s health care system and promote training in the field.  

The ambassador said his country wishes to develop relations with Vietnam, including expanding cooperation and establishing twining ties among the two countries’ localities in the coming time.

VNA