President Vo Van Thuong and his entourage’s trip to China to attend the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF) has been a success, achieving the set goals and contributing effectively to the enforcement of foreign policy set by the 13th National Party Congress, said Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son.

During an interview granted to the press following the trip, Son said it marked the first multilateral diplomatic activity of President Thuong this year.

Through the forum and sideline activities, Vietnam has affirmed its consistent foreign policy of being a friend, a reliable partner and a responsible member of the international community, and clear stance on support for multilateralism and initiatives that promote peace, cooperation and development in the region and the world, he said.

According to him, Vietnam together with other ecountries shared experience and discussed cooperation orientations for emerging and widely-concerned topics such as digital transformation, green development, and economic connectivity, contributing to building world and regional economies that are multi-connected, open, inclusive, sustainable, with people at the centre.

The Vietnamese ministries and agencies also had the opportunity to further enhance cooperation with partners from various countries. The outcomes of this forum will support the implementation of Vietnam's "Two Corridors, One Belt" framework and China's "Belt and Road Initiative".

During the two-day forum, President Thuong met with many heads of state and governments, the UN Secretary-General, and leaders of several international organisations, during which partners expressed their appreciation for Vietnam's role and position, and their desire to boost substantive cooperation with Vietnam, expand and deepen ties across economy-trade, sci-tech, education, cultural and people-to-people exchange.

Son said it was also the first time President Thuong had engaged in bilateral meetings with high-ranking Chinese Party and State leaders as head of the Vietnamese State. These meetings were part of a series of high-level interactions between leaders of both Parties and countries since the beginning of this year in the context of celebrations for the 15th anniversary of Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

In particular, the visit contributed to further concretising the visit of historic significance by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong to China in October 2022.

Specifically, he said it has maintained the upward trend of and added new positive momentum to the stable and healthy development of Vietnam-China relationship, raising common awareness of major measures to cultivate substantial cooperation in various areas, and continuing to bolster traditional friendship and strengthening the foundation of public opinions conducive to the development of bilateral ties.

The minister further said that both sides agreed to seriously follow the common perceptions reached by top leaders, adhere to international law, effectively manage and properly handle differences, contributing to maintaining peace and stability in the region./.VNA