Cooperation between Vietnam and Algeria has yet to match potential, said Vietnamese Ambassador to Algeria Pham Quoc Tru. 

Vietnamese Ambassador to Algeria Pham Quoc Tru

In an interview with a Vietnam News Agency correspondent on the occasion of the 55th anniversary of Vietnam-Algeria diplomatic ties (October 28), Ambassador Tru said it’s time for the two countries to review their relationship and advance multi-faceted cooperation and elevate the relations to a new level as mentioned during then-Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung’s visit to Algeria in 2015. 

The 11th meeting of the Vietnam-Algeria Inter-Governmental Committee, scheduled for November 27-29, 2017 in Algiers, should focus on how to materialise the target, he said. 

Tru suggested the two countries enhance collaboration in economy, trade and tourism as Algeria is opening up to foreign investors. 

The ambassador also called on the two countries to step up ties in culture and sports, as well as cooperation between their localities. 

He emphasised that the establishment of bilateral diplomatic ties on October 28, 1962 opened up a new chapter for the relationship between Vietnam and Algeria as independent nations. 

Reviewing ties over the past more than five decades, Tru said on June 11, 1969, Algeria advanced its relations with the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam to the ambassadorial level. 

Accordingly, Algeria financed the operation of the Embassy of the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam in the country, he said. 

Since 1970, Vietnam and Algeria have exchanged high-ranking delegations and consolidated ties and cooperation across fields, including at the international arena, especially the UN and the Non-Aligned Movement. 

Tru underlined the exchange of experts between the two countries, with thousands of Vietnamese experts sent to Algeria from 1980-1990. 

The two countries have also made strides in trade cooperation, he said, noting that Algeria is one of Vietnam’s major African export markets. 

He said Vietnam’s investment in the Bir Seba joint-venture is one of very few Vietnamese oil and gas projects abroad operating successfully, with 20,000 barrels per day. 

On this occasion, the diplomat recalled the mutual support between Vietnam and Algeria during their struggles for independence. 

The friendship is a shared valuable asset that needs to be developed to a new height, he said.-VNA