Myanmar State Counsellor begins official visit to Vietnam
Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi began her two-day official visit to Vietnam on April 19 at the invitation of Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.
Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi |
Her visit takes place in a context of increased political trust and cooperation between the two nations.
Vietnam and Myanmar set up diplomatic ties on May 28, 1975.
The two countries elevated their ties to a comprehensive cooperative partnership during a State visit to Myanmar by General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong in August 2017.
They have supported each other at sub-regional, regional and international forums such as the United Nations, ASEAN, Cambodia-Laos-Myanmar-Vietnam cooperation, Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS) and the Greater Mekong Sub-region.
Economic, trade and investment ties have been maintained in agriculture, fisheries, finance-banking, aviation, telecommunications, oil and gas exploration and exploitation, mining, power device production and automobile manufacturing and assembly.
Bilateral trade hit US$828.3 million in 2017, up 51 percent from 2016. Vietnam is the 7th biggest foreign investor in Myanmar with 70 projects worth nearly US$2 billion.
During the visit to Myanmar by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong in August 2017, the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade and Myanmar’s Ministry of Commerce signed a memorandum of understanding on trade cooperation.
The two countries have regularly held meetings of the joint committee on bilateral cooperation and the joint sub-committee on trade. Trade fairs have also been held in each country to introduce products and attract investors.
In addition, bilateral security and defence relations have been tightened. Based on a defence cooperation agreement signed in 2011, the two armies have sped up all-level delegation exchanges and boosted cooperation in border management, and illegal migration and smuggling prevention.