The Vice Chairman of the Vietnam National Assembly, Nguyen Duc Kien, made the suggestion while receiving a delegation of the Russian State Duma Committee for Energy, led by First Deputy Chairman Simanovskiy Leonid Yakovlevich, in Hanoi on November 16.

Kien said he was delighted at the timeless efforts the two nations have made to elevate their ties to the level of strategic partnership and comprehensive cooperation, especially in economics, trade, oil and gas and nuclear energy.

Senior leaders of Vietnam and Russia have regularly visited each other’s countries, and most recently President Dmitry Medvedev paid an official visit to Vietnam and attended the ASEAN-Russia Summit, he said.

He noted with pleasure that the cooperation between the two parliaments were developing fruitfully, both bilaterally and multilaterally, adding that NA Chairman Nguyen Phu Trong’s official visit to Russia in April 2009 has helped strengthen friendly and cooperative ties between the two States and parliaments.

The Vietnamese legislator urged the two parliaments to maintain the regular exchange of delegations to share information and operational experience.

Yakovlevich shared his host’s view, saying the two parliaments should step up cooperation and mutual assistance in law making and supervision, and speed up the implementation of cooperation projects.

The same day, the Russian lawmakers held talks with a delegation of the Vietnam NA Committee for Science, Technology and Environment led by its Chairman Dang Vu Minh.

The two sides informed each other about their respective committee operations, particularly in lawmaking, supervision and evaluating bills and major energy projects.

During its trip which runs until November 21, the Russian delegation is scheduled to work with leaders of the Ministry of Science and Technology, and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. The delegation will also visit Ho Chi Minh City and hold working sessions with several energy groups and corporations.