Prime Minister of Finland Juha Sipila affirmed that Finland wants to step up multi-dimensional ties with Vietnam while meeting with Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh in Helsinki on October 17.

Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh (L) and Prime Minister of Finland Juha Sipila

He underscored the need to lift bilateral ties to a greater height via the establishment of the strategic partnership across education-training, innovation, clean technology, water resources management and forestry. 

He also expressed his delight at visiting Vietnam in 2018 on the occasion of the 45th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties while extending sympathy with Vietnam over big losses in humans and property in recent floods.

Thinh asked Finland to actively support Vietnam – European Union ties, especially the signing and adoption of the European Union – Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA). 

She and the PM agreed on measures to boost economic-trade ties by facilitating the two countries’ business operations in potential fields such as information technology and communications, clean water supply, forest wood industry, renewable energies, among others. 

Host and guest discussed the importance of maintaining global peace and security and working closely together at the United Nations, the Asia-Europe Meeting, the ASEAN and the European Union, and other multilateral forums to achieve the goal. 

Meeting Speaker of the Parliament of Finland Maria Lohela, Thinh thanked the Finnish parliament, government and people for considering Vietnam a priority partner in development policies and providing support for the country in the past fight for independence and national development at present. 

She expressed wish that Finland will continue maintaining the supply of official development assistance (ODA) to Vietnam to cope with climate change, affirming that the Vietnamese government will continue working closely with Finland to build projects that effectively use Finland’s ODA. 

Lohela, in reply, said the Finnish parliament will continue encouraging domestic firms to do business in Vietnam, adding that there remains room for bilateral cooperation.

She noted that parliamentary cooperation is one of the efficient cooperation channels in Vietnam-Finland relations. 

Expressing sympathy with human and property losses caused by the recent flood in Vietnam, she committed support to Vietnam to cope with adverse impacts of climate change. 

The two sides vowed to reinforce ties in fields of Finland’s strength and Vietnam’s demand and uphold the bridging role of the Vietnamese nationals in Finland.

VNA