Plenty of room for Vietnam, Uruguay to boost cooperation: Uruguayan FM
Outgoing Vietnamese Ambassador to Uruguay Duong Quoc Thanh on January 30 came to bid farewell to Uruguayan Minister of Foreign Affairs Omar Paganini who affirmed that there is plenty of room for the two countries to further step up cooperation.
Paganini expressed his hope that Vietnam will open its embassy in Montevideo soon to contribute to promote the bilateral partnership, and asked for Vietnam’s support for Uruguay’s joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) after the Latin American country submitted its application in late 2022.
He hailed Thanh’s efforts and contributions to the development of the ties between Uruguay and Vietnam over the past years, marked with a visit to Uruguay by Vietnamese National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue in April 2023.
For his part, Thanh thanked the Uruguayan minister for his support and assistance, and hoped that, as the President pro tempore of the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR) in the second half of 2024, Uruguay will speed up the negotiations on free trade agreements between the bloc and a number of Asian countries, including Vietnam.
Vietnam and Uruguay should increase trade and investment exchanges, especially in areas such as exporting beef, maize, soybeans and electronic products and construction materials, Thanh proposed.
Paganini said that he plans to visit Vietnam this year, together with a visit by Minister of Livestock, Agriculture, and Fisheries Fernando Mattos, with the aim of promoting cooperation agreements.
The same day, Thanh had a meeting with Intendant of Montevideo Carolina Cosse who pledged to speed up a plan to build a Vietnamese culture space on a 500 sq.m area near the international conventional centre. The city will issue a resolution in March, she said, adding that the space includes a zone for commemorating President Ho Chi Minh who once arrived in ports in Uruguay and Argentina during his journey to seek ways to savage the nation 112 years ago.
The project is expected to become a symbol of solidarity and friendship between the governments and people of Uruguay and Vietnam, Cosse said.
Thanh underlined the need to strengthen locality-to-locality collaboration, including the implementation of a letter of intent signed between Ho Chi Minh City and Montevideo.
Cosse showed her interest in cooperating with HCM City in promising areas such as building houses for low-income people, climate change response and information technology.
The capital of Montevideo is the largest and most important economic, technological, administrative and cultural hub of Uruguay and is considered the city with the best quality of life in Latin America, she said.
At a meeting with Secretary General of the Communist Party of Uruguay Juan Castillo, Thanh congratulated the Party for its rising role in the political life of the Latin American country, as well as its important contributions to the Frente Amplia, the left-wing political coalition of Uruguay.
Castillo said he hoped to further strengthen partnership with the Communist Party of Vietnam through the exchange of delegations to learn Vietnam’s experience in national construction and development.
He also hailed the CPV’s role in Vietnam’s achievements during the “Doi moi” (Renewal) cause.
