Sweden, Vietnam sanguine about flourishing relations
VOV.VN - Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson expressed satisfaction with the positive developments in bilateral relations after over half a century since the establishment of diplomatic ties during talks held in Stockholm on November 11 as part of the former’s visit to the European nation from November 10 to November 13.
During the course of talks, Swedish PM Kristersson welcomed VP Xuan and her delegation’s visit to the Scandinavian country amid the two sides celebrating the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations (1969 - 2024), as well as congratulating Vietnam on its tremendous achievements recorded in socio-economic development and international integration in recent times.
He affirmed that Sweden values its relationship with the nation and wishes to promote ties between the two countries in the fields of trade, investment, innovation, digital transformation, green transformation, climate change response, and sustainable development.
VP Xuan sincerely thanked the valuable and effective assistance that both the Government and people of Sweden had given to the country during its historic struggles for national liberation as well as in the current process of socio-economic development and international integration.
Sweden became the first Western European country to establish diplomatic ties with Vietnam back in 1969. It was also the first Western European nation to provide non-refundable aid to the nation continuously since the early 1970s, with the total amount of more than US$3 billion, focusing on essential areas such as healthcare and education.
The Vietnamese VP affirmed that the country always attaches importance to consolidating and expanding the traditional friendship and fruitful cooperation with its Swedish counterparts.
Regarding economic co-operation, VP Xuan thanked Sweden for being one of the first countries to ratify the new-generation EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA).
She suggested that the Swedish Government continue to encourage their businesses to increase investment in the Vietnamese market in areas where Sweden has strengths and Vietnam has needs, such as renewable energy, digital transformation, green transformation, the circular economy, infrastructure, and especially helping the Southeast Asian nation to innovate its economic growth model associated with innovation as it is a field in which Sweden has leading strengths in the world.
Regarding bilateral relations, host and guest agreed that co-operation is growing steadily across multiple fields.
Based on the good achievements of co-operation recorded after 55 years, the two sides consented to further deepen the bilateral relationship by intensifying the exchange of delegations at all levels, especially high-level ones. This will be done whilst continuing to closely work together at regional and international forums such as the UN and within the ASEAN-EU co-operation framework. Other efforts include stepping up linkages in innovation, science, technology, culture, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges in a bid to deepen mutual understanding, all whilst reinforcing the friendship between the two peoples as a contribution to elevating the bilateral ties to new heights.
The Swedish PM shared VP Xuan’s assessment of the development and role of the 22,000-strong Vietnamese community in the European nation, while also affirming that the Swedish Government will continue to offer favourable conditions for the Vietnamese community to deeply integrate into the host country, thus contributing to the prosperity and cultural diversity of Swedish society and enhancing its role as a bridge of friendship to foster sound ties between the two countries.
Concerning international and regional issues of mutual interest, the two sides expressed concern regarding the escalation of tensions at some hotspots in the world, emphasizing their support for finding long-term and sustainable peaceful solutions to conflicts on the basis of respecting the fundamental principles of the UN Charter and international law.
On this occasion, the VP conveyed Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s invitation to Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson to pay an official visit to Vietnam soon.
Right before the talks, the two leaders witnessed the signing of two Memorandums of Understanding on co-operation between the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sweden, as well as between the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sweden.
