Vietnam strengthens ties with Qatar

Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh has affirmed Vietnam's wish to develop multi-faceted cooperation with Qatar at talks and meetings with Qatari leaders.

Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh meets Qatari Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor Al Thani.

Minh's official visit was made on March 24 at the invitation of Qatari Prime Minister cum Foreign Minister Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor Al Thani. Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Thanh Hoa and representatives of some Vietnamese businesses also participated in the delegation.

During his stay in Qatar, the Vietnamese diplomat held talks with his Qatari counterpart, paid a courtesy visit to Crown Prince Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and met with Minister of Social Affairs and Acting Minister of Labour Nasser bin Abdulla al-Hamidi, and Minister of Business and Trade Jassim bin Abdulaziz Al Thani who is also Chairman of the Qatar-Vietnam Intergovernmental Committee.

Qatari leaders expressed their delight at the remarkable development of the two countries' bilateral relationship over the past time, adding that the Qatari King and Government paid much attention to boosting ties with Vietnam.

The two sides discussed measures to further increase the effectiveness of bilateral cooperation. They agreed to strengthen delegation exchanges, work closely with and support each other at regional and international forums, and intensify cooperation in the areas of economics, trade, investment and labour.

Both sides agreed to early organise the first meeting of the Vietnam-Qatar Intergovernmental Committee, with the aim to complete a legal framework and work out cooperation directions in various fields in the time to come.

The Qatari side expressed their hope to strengthen investment in projects in Vietnam in line with the two countries' benefits, and affirmed their willingness to create favourable conditions to receive more Vietnamese labourers who want to work in the country.

They also suggested the two countries' businesses intensify information exchange to seek cooperation opportunities, contributing to boosting bilateral economic, trade and investment ties.

President Sang congratulates Pope Francis I

President Truong Tan Sang has sent a congratulatory message to Pope Francis I on his assumption of the papacy.

Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio took his office on March 19 as the 266 th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, taking the name Francis I.

Coming from Argentina, Jorge Mario Bergoglio became the first Latin American pontiff.

Vietnam, Italy promote relations

The newly-signed Vietnam-Italy strategic partnership agreement will help boost bilateral cooperation, consolidate mutual trust and create a healthy environment for fostering the friendship between the two countries, said Italian Ambassador to Vietnam, Lorenzo Angeloni.

In an interview granted to a VOV reporter on the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Vietnam and Italy (March 23), Ambassador Lorenzo Angeloni said that Italy was one of the first countries in the Atlantic union having diplomatic relations with Vietnam in the early days.

“The traditional friendship and cooperation between the two countries has continued to grow and flourish ever since, creating a firm foundation for tightening diplomatic ties in the past four decades,” the Italian diplomat said.

The agreement reached during Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s recent visit to Italy marked a milestone in bilateral relationship. “We all expect to see greater success in the implementation of the agreement for mutual benefits in all fields,” Mr. Angeloni recalled.

According to the Italian Ambassador, Vietnam and Italy have huge potential for boosting economic and trade cooperation as both countries give priority to developing small-and-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Many successful Italian SMEs are seeking to invest in the Southeast Asian country in the hope of building famous trademarks and bringing more made-in-Vietnam products to the European market,” Mr. Angeloni said.

He also suggested promoting cultural and sport exchanges through specific activities such as sending an Italian football squad to Vietnam, inviting a Vietnamese designer to Italy to participate in a fashion show in Italy, or organizing Italian musicians’ concerts.

In addition, he said, Italian language courses will be held to help Vietnamese students get a better understanding of Italy.

Vietnam journalist delegation welcomed in Laos

Laos’ Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism Bosengkham Vongdala on March 25 received Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Journalists’ Association Ma Dieu Cuong who is Laos for a working visit from March 24-30.

Cuong took the occasion to express his joy at seeing the rapid changes in Laos . He reported to the Lao minister the results of his talks with the Lao Journalists’ Association on their bilateral cooperation last year.

He said the two associations have stepped up their exchanges and sharing of experiences as well as worked together to cover activities during the Vietnam-Laos Friendship and Solidarity Year 2012, thus helping raise the masses’ awareness about the preservation and development of the special relationship between the two countries.

In the coming time, two sides will continue to strengthen their cooperation, particularly in professional activities from central to local levels.

For his part, the minister highly spoke of the effective help of the Vietnam Journalist Association.

He suggested that the two associations pay more attention to educating young people in the two countries’ special relations.

Ho Chi Minh monument inaugurated in Dominica

A square and monument dedicated to President Ho Chi Minh was inaugurated in the Dominican capital city of Santo Domingo Este on March 24.

A Vietnamese delegation led by deputy head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for External Relations Tran Dac Loi attended the event.

Construction of the square and monument, approved by the Santo Domingo Este People’s Council on September 13, 2012, was wholly funded by the United Left-Wing Movement (MIU) Party, the municipal authorities and people.

Addressing the event, Secretary General of the ruling Dominican Liberation Party (DLP) Reynaldo Pared Perez, MIU Party General Secretary cum Minister for Regional Integration Affairs Miguel Mejia, and Mayor of Santo Domingo Este City Juan de los Santos hailed the late President’s contributions to the struggle for national liberation of the Vietnamese, Latin American and global people.

At a reception for the Vietnamese delegation earlier, Dominican President Danilo Medina, President of the ruling DLP Leonel Fernandez, Senate President cum DLP Secretary General Reynaldo Pared Parez and President of the Chamber of Deputies Abel Martinez said they wish to further strengthen the friendship and cooperation in various fields with Vietnam.

The delegation also had a working session with MIU Party General Secretary Mejia, met Dominican Foreign Minister, visited the MIU Party Committee named Ho Chi Minh and Santo Domingo University.

Thai Nguyen urged to tap potential for stronger development

Thai Nguyen province needs to deal with its weaknesses in order to fully tap into its potential and advantages and boost agro-forestry and industrial development.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung made this statement on March 25 during his working visit to examine the socio-economic situation in the northern province of Thai Nguyen.

PM Dung praised the province’s significant achievements over the past year and in the first quarter of this year. The local economy grew 7.2 percent, which helped generate 22,600 new jobs and reduce the number of poor households by 2.93 percent.

Its 18,500 hectares of tea trees have the great potential to be a spearhead in the province’s fight against poverty; therefore Thai Nguyen should develop industrial-scale processing and marketing for this product.

Dung said the Government is willing to create the best possible conditions for Thai Nguyen to develop into an economic, political, cultural and educational centre of the northern midland and mountainous region.

He also said the province still has a long way to go to improve its investment environment, reform administrative procedures and attract more high-tech projects.

The same day, PM Dung attended a ceremony to inaugurate the construction of the US$3.2 billion Samsung high-tech complex in Thai Nguyen.

The complex, which will house the world’s largest Samsung mobile phone factory, is expected to provide jobs for tens of thousands of local people and contribute billions of US$ to the country’s annual export turnover, in addition to boosting the development of support industries for the electronics sector in the northern region of Vietnam.

In his speech at the inauguration, PM Dung said the Vietnamese Government is very pleased with Samsung’s decision to expand its operations in Vietnam, adding that this will also contribute to the strategic cooperation partnership between Vietnam and the Republic of Korea.

The Prime Minister also praised the contributions Korean businesses have made to Vietnam’s economic development and pledged to facilitate long-term investment from foreign businesses for mutual benefit.

Vietnam attends IPU meeting in Ecuador

Vice Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan is attending the 128th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) General Assembly in Ecuador from March 22-27.

In her speech at the plenary session, Ngan voiced Vietnam’s strong support for IPU discussions regarding new growth models to benefit people.

Despite having already achieved a relatively high economic growth over the years, Vietnam wants to sustain this steady growth along with ensuring social progress and equality, protecting natural resources and the environment, and maintaining socio-political stability, said Ngan.

She stressed the important role the Vietnam National Assembly plays in finalising the legal system in order to support development goals, creating an equal environment for people of all social strata to enjoy the fruit of socio-economic development.

She reviewed Vietnam’s major campaigns to realise its millennium development goals (MDGs) and reaffirmed the country’s commitment to work closely with the IPU and international community to bring a better life for all in the new development era.

Earlier, the Vietnam NA delegation visited Peru from March 20-22 to strengthen cooperation between the two legislative bodies and countries, especially in legislation, economics, trade and investment.

VNN/VOV/VNS/VNA