The agreement was inked by Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son and Minister for Foreign Affairs, International Business, Trade and Energy of the Commonwealth of Dominica Vince Henderson, who were in New York to attend the high-level week of the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly.

At a working session before the signing ceremony, the two ministers discussed and reached consensus on measures to bolster the friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and the Commonwealth of Dominica.

Son highly valued the outcomes of Henderson’s visit to Vietnam in March, the first by an official of the Dominican Government in the context that the two countries are celebrating the 10th founding anniversary of diplomatic relations (November 1, 2013 - 2023).

The Vietnamese minister suggested both sides continue close coordination to carry out the agreed measures, while enhancing delegation exchanges, as well as encouraging and creating favourable conditions for enterprises of both nations to exchange information and seek cooperation opportunities.

Both sides should consider the acceleration of negotiations on economic and trade deals such as a double taxation avoidance agreement, and cooperation pacts in the fields of science, technology, education and agriculture, thus making contributions to the development of the bilateral ties, Son added.

For his part, Henderson said Dominica always treasures and wants to intensify its relations with Vietnam, and spoke highly of the coordination between the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Consulate General of the Commonwealth of Dominica in Ho Chi Minh City in the arrangement of his visit to Vietnam, as well as the acceleration of procedures for the signing of the agreement on visa exemption for holders of diplomatic and official passports.

He described the agreement as an important step in the bilateral relations, and expressed his hope that, with the efforts of both nations, the Dominica-Vietnam ties will witness breakthrough development steps in the future.

The two ministers also agreed to boost coordination, and support each other at multilateral forums, especially at the UN, in addition to promoting cooperation between Vietnam and countries in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and between Dominica and other ASEAN member states./. VNA