He was welcomed at King Khalid International Airport by Prince Saud Al Faisal, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources and many other senior officials of the government. Also present at the airport were Vietnamese Ambassador Dao Thanh Chung and his staff.

Shortly after that Mr Triet attended a joint business forum and received CEOs of several leading Saudi Arabian groups, which want to explore opportunities in Vietnam.

The official welcome ceremony will be held at 00.30hrs on April 11 (Hanoi time). 

Relations between Vietnam and Saudi Arabia have fared well since the two established diplomatic ties in October 1999. Vietnam opened its embassy in Riyadh in 2007, and Saudi Arabia inaugurated its embassy in Hanoi in 2009.

The two countries have signed a framework agreement on economic, trade, investment and technological cooperation, laying a legal foundation for expanding trade ties.

Two-way trade hit US$159 million in 2007 and the figure doubled in 2008. It rose to US$460 million despite the global financial turmoil.

Vietnam exports garments, seafood, computers, electronic spare parts, furniture and steel to the Middle East nation, and imports refined oil, chemicals and liquefied gas.

Two Saudi Arabian groups are operating in Vietnam’s steel and real estate areas.