Strengthening Vietnam-UK strategic partnership
(VOV) - Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s visit to the UK aims to promote the political relationship, mutual understanding and trust as well as the strategic partnership between the two countries.
Party leader Nguyen Phu Trong began his two-day official visit to the UK and Northern Ireland on January 22 at the invitation of British Prime Minister David Cameron.
This is the first trip to the UK by a Vietnamese Party leader in the history of bilateral ties when the two countries are planning a series of activities to mark the 40th anniversary of diplomatic ties this year.
The UK is a big country, playing its important part in the world and the European Union (EU), having great potential for enhancing relations with Vietnam. The country is the word’s seventh biggest economy with its GDP reaching US$ 2,841 billion in 2011.
As one of the world’s largest investors, the UK ranks sixth in global trade performance, third in the EU and 17th among countries and territories across the world currently investing in Vietnam. British businesses operate in Vietnam’s key economic sectors such as oil and gas, finance-banking, insurance, manufacturing industry, garments and service.
In recent years, two-way trade turnover between Vietnam and the UK has grown by 15-20 percent.
After the signing of the agreement on Vietnam-UK Development Partnership for the 2006-2015 period, the UK has kept providing ODA for Vietnam, becoming the first bilateral donor, and the only nation in the world who already signed a 10 year- development cooperation agreement with Vietnam.
Since the establishment of a strategic partnership in September 2010, the two countries have actively cooperated through their Joint Economic Trade Committee (JETCO) in implementing annual plans of actions.
The two sides have agreed to promote delegation exchanges at all levels, maintain senior leaders’ meetings, boost relations between the two legislative bodies, ministries, sectors and localities, increase economic, trade, investment cooperation as well as cooperation at multilateral international forums such as the UN and ASEM.
The UK is committed to providing ODA for Vietnam as required in the process of reducing poverty, adapting to climate change, promoting education-training, combating corruption and strengthening relations with the EU.
The UK will further cooperate with Vietnam in the areas of navigation, finance-banking and education-training to raise bilateral trade turnover to US$4 billion this year.
This is the first time the British Government has invited a Party General Secretary from foreign country to visit the UK.