Chinese Premier’s official visit to Việt Nam a success: Diplomat

October 15,bd tl tbn 2024 - 10:48 Your browser does not support the audio element. The visit helped further step up substantive cooperation between Việt Nam and China, which is already experiencing rapid growth. During meetings, the two sides reached important consensus on continuing to expand economic and trade cooperation while promoting "hard connectivity" in areas such as railways, highways, and seaport infrastructure

Chinese Ambassador to Việt Nam He Wei— VNA/VNS Photo

 HÀ NỘI — The official visit to Việt Nam by Chinese Premier Li Qiang was a success, Chinese Ambassador to Việt Nam He Wei has said.

Fully reflecting special nature of Việt Nam-China relations

Talking to the Vietnamese press to share his insights on the outcomes of the Chinese leader’s visit, the diplomat highlighted the significance of the trip to the bilateral relations, saying that both sides attach importance to the event.

According to the ambassador, Li’s visit took place right in the first year of implementing the important consensus between the top leaders of the two Parties and promoting the building of the China - Việt Nam community with a shared future.

It was also the first by a Chinese Premier to Việt Nam in 11 years and marked the first time Li visited Vietnam since taking office, he added.

On the evening of October 12, shortly after arriving in Hà Nội, Premier Li was welcomed by and met with Vietnamese Party General Secretary and President Tô Lâm.

A day later, Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính presided over an official welcome ceremony for the Chinese leader, spent significant time engaging in talks with and hosting a banquet for him, witnessing a ceremony to exchange cooperation agreements, and participating in a business seminar between enterprises of the two countries, along with other activities. National Assembly Chairman Trần Thanh Mẫn also held a meeting with Premier Li. Việt Nam and China issued a joint statement, featuring a wide range of contents.

All of these fully reflected the nature of the special friendship as “both comrades and brothers” between China and Việt Nam, the ambassador said, adding that the two sides agreed that the visit produced fruitful outcomes and played a positive role in advancing the building of the China-Việt Nam community with a shared future that carries strategic significance.

The outcomes of the visit are reflected in three key aspects, according to Ambassador He.

Firstly, the visit contributed to further strengthening mutual political trust between the two sides. During talks and meetings, the two sides reaffirmed their commitment to prioritising the development of bilateral relations as a strategic choice for each other; and emphasised that the development of one country presents an opportunity for the other’s development and serves as a positive factor for regional and global development. The two sides also agreed to fully implement the common and important perceptions reached between the top leaders of the two Parties and countries, advancing the China-Việt Nam community with a shared future towards practical outcomes in accordance with the "six elevations" direction. The visit also underscored the leading role of the two countries' top leaders in shaping the development of bilateral relations.

Secondly, the visit helped further step up substantive cooperation between Việt Nam and China, which is already experiencing rapid growth. During meetings, the two sides reached important consensus on continuing to expand economic and trade cooperation while promoting "hard connectivity" in areas such as railways, highways, and seaport infrastructure; as well as "soft connectivity" such as smart customs. The two sides also successfully organised a thematic conference between representatives of Chinese and Vietnamese businesses, facilitating deeper cooperation within the business communities of the two countries.

Thirdly, the visit contributed to creating a comprehensive consensus on the friendship between the peoples of the two countries. The media in both nations swiftly covered the visit, reflecting the positive momentum in Việt Nam-China relations and promoting the spread of friendly consensus from the high to the grassroots level. Leaders of the two countries reached an important common perception on strengthening the dissemination of the China-Việt Nam friendship, fostering mutual understanding between the two peoples, and supporting exchanges and cooperation between Chinese and Vietnamese localities, especially those in border areas. The two sides also engaged in frank and in-depth discussions on issues at sea. They strongly agreed to abide by the principle of managing differences through friendly consultations and have full confidence in the future of China-Việt Nam relations.

Further promoting traditional bilateral friendship

As the newly-appointed Chinese Ambassador to Việt Nam, He shared insights and observations about the current relationship between the two countries and the potential for further development across various fields in the future.

The strategic guidance of the top leaders of the two Parties and states would serve as the "balancing point" in the bilateral relations, he noted

Reviewing the top-level visits between the two countries over the past three years and emphasising the foundation-laying role by the predecessors in fostering sincere friendship and deep revolutionary ties, Ambassador He expressed his belief that Vietnamese leaders would inherit and promote the legacy left by the previous generations of leaders, thus further promoting the traditional friendship between the two countries, and working together to build the Việt Nam-China community with a shared future that carries strategic significances.

The establishment of the community with a shared future made a promising start, with substantive cooperation becoming a "growth point" in bilateral relations.

China is Việt Nam's largest trade partner. Two-way trade has exceeded US$200 billion for three consecutive years. In the first eight months of this year, the trade hit $167 billion, up 19.2 per cent year-on-year.

According to the diplomat, in the first seven months of 2024, the China-Việt Nam freight train service set three new records for monthly cargo volume. Additionally, the construction of the cross-border railway route between China and Việt Nam has been accelerated to promote regional connectivity.

With its experience in structural transformation and economic development, China is willing to share its knowledge with Việt Nam, helping the Southeast Asian country avoid detours and move toward industrialisation and modernisation more effectively.

He expressed his belief that as long as the two sides have trust, patience, and determination, many challenging problems could be solved.

People-to-people exchanges and cultural interactions between the two countries held immense potential and were regarded as a "treasure" in the bilateral relations, he stressed.

According to the ambassador, there are currently about 23,000 Vietnamese students studying in China, doubling the number before the COVID-19 pandemic broke out.

In terms of tourism, in the first eight months of 2024, Việt Nam welcomed 2.4 million Chinese visitors, accounting for 21.4 per cent of the total international arrivals, making China the second-largest source market of international tourists to Việt Nam. There are more than 200 round-trip flights between the two countries each week.

Next year will mark the 75th founding anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Việt Nam, as well as the "Year of Việt Nam-China Humanistic Exchange”, so the two sides should seize these opportunities to strengthen a more solid social foundation, further promoting their traditional friendship so that the friendship between the two peoples become a “catalyst” for the bilateral relations, the diplomat said. — VNA/VNS