Vietnam and Italy have agreed to quickly deploy their Action Plan for 2015-2016 for accelerated cooperation, focusing on the spheres of politics and diplomacy, global and regional issues, economics, development, culture and education and security-defence.

The agreement came after a conference held in Rome, Italy, on February 26 reviewing the implementation of the Vietnam-Italy Action Plan in 2013-2014 and outlining the 2015-2016 one.

Conference participant, Efisio Luigi Marras, General Director for Italian Globalisation and Global Affairs under the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that the Italian Government always gives priority to fostering its cooperation with Vietnam.

He stressed that the two nations have effectively coordinated to nurture their strategy partnership.

Meanwhile, representatives from the Italian Ministry and the Vietnamese Embassy in Italy highlighted the significance of reaped outcomes in the 2013-2014 period, saying that these contributed to promoting the bilateral relations in all fields, especially in economics, trade, investment, education, people-to-people exchange, security-defence, and military technology.

Vietnamese Ambassador Nguyen Hoang Long thanked the Italian ministries and sectors for their active cooperation in recent time, saying it helped spread Vietnam’s image widely in Italy and in Europe in general.

The Vietnam-Italy relations have incessantly been strengthened through the exchange of high-level visits, especially Prime Minister Matteo Renzi making the first Italian PM’s official visit to Vietnam during the two countries’ 40-year diplomatic ties.

The launch of the Italian Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City in November 2014 manifested the Italian Government’s policy of treasuring all-around cooperation with Vietnam.

The two nations have established deputy foreign minister and deputy defence minister-level political dialogue mechanisms, while forming the Joint-Committee on Economic Cooperation between the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Italian Ministry of Economic Development, and arranging a series of visits and working sessions at all levels.

A large number of cooperative projects in science research, training and education were signed, and cultural exchange activities were organised during the period.

Two-way trade between Vietnam and Italy grew steadily at 25-30 percent annually, hitting US$3.6 billion in 2014. The figure is hoped to reach US$5 billion in 2016. Italy is now an important market for Vietnam’s exports.

The same day, Ambassador Nguyen Hoang Long had a meeting with Italian Deputy Foreign Minister Benedetto Della Vedova.