Vietnam eyes to bolster ties with New South Wales
Vietnamese Ambassador to Australia Pham Hung Tam paid an official visit to New South Wales from July 3-4 to discuss measures to enhance cooperation between Vietnam and Australia in general and the state in particular.
While there, Tam made a courtesy call to the state’s Governor Margaret Beazley who spoke highly of the rapid development of cooperation between the two countries, especially since the upgrade of their relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership during the official visit by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh to Australia in March 2024. Beazley also expressed her satisfaction at the fine friendship and cooperation between New South Wales and Ho Chi Minh City – Vietnam’s largest economic hub.
The Vietnamese diplomat also had meetings with Speaker of the Parliament of New South Wales Gregory Piper, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly Robyn Preston, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Andrew Bell, and Minister for Skills, TAFE and Tertiary Education Steve Whan.
The hosts emphasised the importance of parliamentary and judicial cooperation between Australia and Vietnam. Piper highly valued bilateral collaboration in the fields of politics, diplomacy, economics, trade, and investment; and agreed to the strengthen educational cooperation, people-to-people exchanges and sharing of judicial experience. Meanwhile, Preston expressed interest in cooperation in exchanging parliamentarians and learning about the dynamics for the development of bilateral relations.
Bell expressed his hope to increase the exchange of judicial delegations and promote collaboration at relevant international and regional forums, including the Conference of Chief Justices of Asia and the Pacific; while Steve Whan showed his interest in educational and vocational training cooperation between the two countries, and highlighted the important role of international students, including Vietnamese, in the education sector of Australia in general and New South Wales which houses the largest number of Vietnamese students, in particular.
On this occasion, Ambassador Tam also visited the University of Sydney, and the University of Technology Sydney, and several technology centres and companies in the state.
At the meetings, the Vietnamese diplomat emphasised the importance of cooperation between the two countries’ localities, including the effective partnership between New South Wales and Ho Chi Minh City. He proposed the state leaders continue to support and engage with Vietnamese community associations there to contribute to the two countries’ friendship; and consider the removal of some temporary restrictions for students from central Vietnam.
He called for efforts to promote training cooperation in technology and renewable energy, and suggested universities in New South Wales collaborate with Vietnamese representative offices in the state and across Australia to manage and protect Vietnamese citizens and students.
