Party leader’s China visit is a great success, says FM

In an interview granted to media outlets, Son highlighted the major results achieved during the visit, noting that the trip was an event of great importance to both sides and captured great public attention both domestically and internationally.

According to the Minister, the visit marked the first in-person meeting between the top leaders of both sides following the COVID-19 pandemic. It was also General Secretary Trong’s first visit to China following the 13th national congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam held in early 2021. In addition, he also became first foreign leader received by Chinese Party General Secretary and President Xi Jinping following the recently-concluded 20th national congress of the Chinese Communist Party.

The visit comes hot on the heels of regular exchanges and contact made between the two countries’ top leaders over recent years. The past two years alone saw General Secretary Trong and President Xi hold four phone calls, whilst the two sides also regularly exchanged letters of congratulation to mark major events of each country.

Amid ongoing unpredictable regional and global complications, Son said that the visit would help to deepen the comprehensive strategic cooperation partnership that exists between Vietnam and China, while simultaneously strengthening political trust, so á to create a solid political foundation for promoting substantive co-operation in all fields between the two countries.

The visit highlights that the Party, State, and people of Vietnam continue to place great importance on developing good relations with the Chinese Party, State, and people, in the fundamental and long-term interests of both peoples and for peace, cooperation, and development in the region and the wider world, stressed the diplomat.

Discussing the notable outcomes of the visit, Son said that both sides released a 13-point joint statement outlining the various strategic orientations for the development of bilateral relations across all fields. They agreed to consolidate and develop the Vietnam – China comprehensive strategic co-operation partnership under the motto of “friendly neighbourliness, comprehensive cooperation, long-term stability and future-oriented thinking” and in the spirit of “good neighbours, good friends, good comrades, good partners”. They also reached a general consensus on substantive cooperation contents, such as promoting the connection between the ‘Two Corridors, One Belt’ Framework and the ‘Belt and Road’ Initiative, facilitating the opening of the market for agricultural, forestry and fishery products of Vietnam, and opening Vietnamese trade offices in China.

The two sides also consented to create the best possible conditions to boost businesses and increase investment, along with economic and trading co-operation, along with boosting ties in the fields of air, road, and railway transport. They vowed to reduce the existing trade imbalance, completely solving congestion at border gates, and facilitating customs clearance.

With regard to maritime issues, the two sides agreed that it is extremely important to properly control disagreements and maintain peace and stability in the East Sea. They therefore consented to strive to promote the comprehensive and effective implementation of the Declaration of Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) on the basis of consultation and agreement, as well as swiftly achieving an effective and practical Code of Conduct in the waters (COC) in accordance with international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Along with this they agreed to better control disputes occurring at sea and take no further action to complicate the situation or worsen the dispute.

Most notably, the ministries, agencies, and localities of the two countries signed 13 cooperation documents in various fields, creating the prerequisite for fostering further bilateral ties moving forward.

In order to concretise the outcomes of the visit, the Foreign Minister outlined that the two sides will continue to maintain reciprocal exchanges and contact at all levels and through all channels in a bid to promote mutual understanding and political trust. They must therefore seek to improve the efficiency of economic-trade-investment cooperation, as well as cooperation in other fields to support and give fresh impetus to the future development of mutual relations.

Moreover, Son said that the two sides should strictly adhere to the high-level common perceptions, respect each other’s legitimate interests, and settle disputes and disagreements through peaceful means in accordance with international law. In his opinion, both sides should continue effectively making use of the Government-level negotiation mechanism on territorial border and Working Groups meetings regarding maritime issues between the two countries, while working with other ASEAN countries to fully and effectively implement the DOC and swiftly formulate the COC.

Minister Son expressed his belief that the full, comprehensive, and effective implementation of high-level perceptions and results of the visit will greatly help to elevate the Vietnam – China partnership to new heights.