Australia Foreign Minister Julie Bishop will pay a visit to Vietnam from May 26-28 to open the Cao Lanh Bridge with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and co-chair the inaugural Australia-Vietnam Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. 


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Australia Foreign Minister Julie Bishop



The minister said in a media release on May 26 that Australia has co-financed the design and construction of the Cao Lanh Bridge as part of a major new transport project that will help connect 18 million people in the Mekong Delta with regional markets and drive economic growth. 

Australia’s 160 million AUD (over 121 million USD) investment in the project is one of the country’s largest aid activities in Southeast Asia.

The Cao Lanh Bridge is a visible symbol of the depth of the Australia-Vietnam relationship, now formalised as a Strategic Partnership, and demonstrates Australia’s commitment to build closer linkages across the Indo-Pacific region, to bring people together and encourage greater trade and investment, she noted. 

Meanwhile, the inaugural Foreign Ministers’ Meeting is a direct outcome of the new Strategic Partnership between Australia and Vietnam, signed by Prime Ministers Turnbull and Phuc prior to the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in March.

Australia and Vietnam are celebrating 45 years of diplomatic relations this year, she said, noting that strong community and personal ties are the basis of the relationship, marked by 300,000 members of the Vietnamese community in Australia - one of the largest migrant communities in the country.

Julie Bishop said she looks forward to discussing with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh how Australia and Vietnam can expand their collaboration, particularly on important regional issues relating to stability, security and prosperity.

Cao Lanh bridge in the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap, spanning over the Tien River and linking Cao Lanh city and Lap Vo district, is located about 0.8 kilometre from Cao Lanh ferry and about 35 kilometres from My Thuan bridge, which connects Tien Giang and Vinh Long provinces.

The 2,000-metre long bridge is expected to make significant contributions to improving road traffic network, boosting social and economic development and consolidating defence and security in the Mekong Delta region, which is not only a rice granary and the third largest industrial centre in Vietnam but also one of the most productive agricultural and aquaculture areas in the world.

Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has granted an interview to Vietnam News Agency’s correspondents in Sydney on the occasion of her visit to Vietnam from May 26-28.

Vietnam and Australia have officially upgraded their relationship to “Strategic Partner” in March 2018 during the visit of our Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc to Australia and this week, Vietnam welcomed the official visit made by His Excellency General the Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove and Her Excellency Lady Cosgrove. What do you think about the development of cooperation between two countries?

 

I am delighted to be visiting Vietnam during the 45th anniversary year of diplomatic relations between Australia and Vietnam, for my third visit as Foreign Minister.

 

This busy schedule of high-level bilateral visits reflects the recent elevation of the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership, signed during Prime Minister Phuc’s guest-of-government visit to Australia in March. This means our two nations have recognised and laid the foundation for an ever-stronger partnership. 

 

During this visit I will co-chair the inaugural Foreign Ministers’ Meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Minh. Over the coming years, this meeting will provide a regular opportunity to discuss a range of strategic issues and new areas of collaboration.

 

Australia’s deep engagement with Vietnam is also shown by our history of support for Vietnam’s economic development. During my visit, I will be participating in the opening ceremony of the Cao Lanh Bridge in the Mekong delta, for which Australia provided A$160 million, which is our largest single aid activity in mainland Southeast Asia. The bridge will create new economic opportunities for the five million people living in the surrounding area by reducing travel times and making it easier for people to access markets - travel time between Ho Chi Minh City and Long Xuyen will be deduced from four to two and a half hours.

 

Australia and Vietnam’s relationship is underpinned by strong people-to-people links, with around 300,000 Australians of Vietnamese descent in Australia, creating personal and business links with Vietnam. I am looking forward to meeting dynamic Australian-Vietnamese business leaders, entrepreneurs and influences to hear how they are building their own bridges between our countries.

 

Australia and Vietnam have established cooperative relations in many areas such as trade, security, national defence, science and technology, education and tourism... what areas of cooperation should be prioritised and what initiatives should be put in place so bilateral cooperation can continue to contribute effectively to the development of each country as well as to peace, security and stability in the region? 

 

The Strategic Partnership establishes a new bilateral ministerial-level architecture which reflects the contemporary and dynamic relationship between our two countries. This provides for a Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, Defence Ministers’ Meeting, and Economic Partnership Meeting. These ministerial-level meetings will provide direction for increased engagement across the breadth of the relationship, including on defence and security, law enforcement, trade, investment, development cooperation, science and technology, innovation, education, tourism and business links. This cooperation will be the foundation for strong economic growth, peace, security and stability in the region.


What do you think about the cooperation and coordination between Vietnam and Australia in regional and international forums?

 

Australia is a close long-term partner for Vietnam and we have converging regional interests on a range of issues in the Indo-Pacific region. The East Asia Summit and other ASEAN-centred regional organisations like the ASEAN Regional Forum have a critical role to play to ensure the Indo-Pacific remains open, secure, inclusive and prosperous. Australia demonstrated its commitment to a strong and resilient region, and to ASEAN centrality, by holding the first ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in Sydney in March this year.


VNA