Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and Myanmar President Thein Sein declared their determination to achieve 500 million USD in trade this year during their meeting in Nay Pyi Taw, the capital of Myanmar, on June 22.

The PM is on a visit to Myanmar to attend the seventh Cambodia-Laos-Myanmar-Vietnam (CLMV) Summit and the sixth Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy Summit (ACMECS).

He welcomed the celebrations for the 40 th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties and the recent success of the Vietnam-Myanmar Joint Committee’s eighth meeting co-chaired by the two Foreign Ministers.

The guest asked for continued support for Vietnamese firms operating in Myanmar, especially those in banking, oil and gas, telecommunications and industrial plants while extending cooperation to seafood cultivation and processing for export.

He suggested modifying the Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement and the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement to facilitate trade and investment between the two countries.

President Thein Sein informed his guest that Myanmar is working to establish the Myanmar-Vietnam Friendship Association to raise mutual understanding between the two peoples.

Welcoming Vietnamese business operations in Myanmar, he spoke highly of the Hoang Anh Gia Lai complex in Yangon, one of the largest real estate developments in Myanmar, and pledged to consider licensing the opening of a Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam branch.

Trade hit 480.6 million USD last year, up 36.8 percent from 2013. Vietnam has become the eighth largest investor in Myanmar with 33 projects topping 580 million USD.

Both sides agreed to foster cooperation across 12 priority fields mentioned in the Myanmar-Vietnam Joint Statement signed in April 2010 and realise commitments reached at the eighth meeting of the Vietnam-Myanmar Joint Committee.

The two countries will also work jointly on planting and processing coffee and peppercorns for export as well as share experience in vocational training.

Both host and guest pledged to work closely at regional and global forums, especially ASEAN and sub-regional cooperation mechanisms, while maintaining solidarity on important security issues within ASEAN.

The host leader thanked the PM for his invitation to visit Vietnam, saying he will pay his visit at a time of convenience.

In the evening of the same day, he hosted a banquet for Vietnamese, Lao and Cambodian PMs attending the CLMV and ACMECS.

VNA