China is a top priority in Vietnam's foreign policy.

On the afternoon of October 17, President Vo Van Thuong met with Mr. Zhao Leji, Standing Committee Member of the Politburo and Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC, i.e., the Parliament) of China.

President Vo Van Thuong expressed his pleasure at visiting China, emphasizing that the purpose of the trip, besides attending the 3rd Belt and Road Forum at the invitation of General Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping, was to contribute to further concretizing and implementing the common understanding reached by the top leaders of the two Parties and two countries during General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's historic visit to China at the end of October 2022; and through maintaining high-level exchanges and contacts, to contribute to strengthening political trust and practical cooperation between the two countries.

President Vo Van Thuong and Mr. Zhao Leji, Standing Committee Member of the Politburo and Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China.

VNA

The two leaders emphasized that Vietnam and China are neighboring countries with a long-standing tradition of friendship; the friendship, "both comrades and brothers," meticulously cultivated by President Ho Chi Minh, Chairman Mao Zedong, previous generations of leaders, and the people of both countries, is an invaluable shared asset that needs to be continuously inherited, preserved, and further strengthened.

President Vo Van Thuong affirmed that the Party, State, and people of Vietnam always consider building and developing good relations with the Party, Government, and people of China as a strategic choice and a top priority in Vietnam's foreign policy.

Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China, Zhao Leji, affirmed that friendly relations with Vietnam have always been highly valued by the Chinese Communist Party, the Chinese government, and the Chinese people, and have always been a priority in China's neighborly foreign policy.

Discussing measures to promote bilateral relations in the coming time, President Vo Van Thuong suggested that the two sides increase high-level and all-level contacts, consolidate political trust, improve the quality and effectiveness of cooperation in all fields, focusing on promoting balanced and sustainable trade growth; suggested that China increase imports of goods, especially agricultural products from Vietnam; promote investment cooperation and multimodal transport connections.

President Vo Van Thuong also suggested that the two sides strengthen people-to-people exchanges, focusing on cultural exchanges and tourism cooperation, to meet the needs for interaction and spiritual life of the people.

Highly appreciating the cooperation proposals of President Vo Van Thuong, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China Zhao Leji affirmed that China hopes both sides will maintain high-level exchanges and contacts, jointly determine the direction of major cooperation in the relations between the two Parties and two countries in the coming time; further deepen mutually beneficial cooperation areas, with a focus on the strategic connectivity between the "Two Corridors, One Belt" framework and the "Belt and Road Initiative"; and promote economic and trade cooperation, infrastructure, and people-to-people exchanges to achieve even greater results.

Regarding cooperation between the legislative bodies of the two countries, President Vo Van Thuong proposed cooperation between the National Assembly of Vietnam and the National People's Congress of China.   Expanding exchanges, cooperation, and sharing experiences in legislation, supervision, anti-corruption, and building and perfecting the socialist rule of law; playing an important role in building a favorable legal framework and urging and supervising agencies and localities of both countries to implement cooperation agreements and arrangements; promoting exchanges and understanding between all strata of people.

Appreciating the importance of cooperation between the National Assembly of Vietnam and the National People's Congress of China, Mr. Zhao Leji suggested that the two sides strengthen friendly exchanges, deepen cooperation in various fields between the legislative bodies of the two countries, specialized committees, friendship parliamentary groups, and People's Councils at all levels; and coordinate closely and effectively in multilateral parliamentary forums.

Regarding maritime issues, both sides agreed to work together to effectively implement the common understanding of high-level leaders, manage and appropriately handle disagreements, and contribute to maintaining peace and stability in the region.

President Vo Van Thuong suggested that both sides respect each other's legitimate interests, abide by international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and not allow maritime issues to affect bilateral relations and the sentiments of the people of the two countries.

Thanhnien.vn