PM’s tour promotes Europe cooperation

12/03/2008 -- 3:06 PM

Ha Noi (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has finished a nine-day visit to Germany, Britain and Ireland that he called an important step in developing the comprehensive partnership between Viet Nam and Europe. In an interview with the Viet Nam News Agency after he returned to Ha Noi on March 11, PM Dung said the visit was successful as he and the leaders of the three European countries had exchanged and discussed specific measures to build the bilateral relationship in many fields and strengthen coordination on international and regional issues. The Prime Minister said the government leaders of the three nations expressed their expectations to visit Viet Nam in the near future. In Britain, the two sides agreed to boost multi-faceted cooperation to a new stage of development under a “Partnership for Progress.” In Germany, they agreed to build the relationship into a partnership for sustainable development. In Ireland, they pledged to further develop the friendly relationship and multi-faced cooperation between the two countries. PM Dung said the visit had marked a shift in trade and investment cooperation between Viet Nam and Europe, helping ensure more effective and stable cooperation in the long term. The leaders of the three European countries affirmed that they would encourage and actively support their enterprises to strengthen investment and business in Viet Nam, he said. During PM Dung’s tour, Vietnamese enterprises signed agreements and memoranda of understanding worth over 10 billion USD. The leaders of the three European countries all expressed their intention to boost development cooperation with Viet Nam and committed to maintaining official development assistance (ODA) levels for Viet Nam in the coming years and support the country in implementing its Millennium Development Goals to eradicate hunger and reduce poverty as well as enhance environmental protection. Britain agreed to provide 200 million USD in ODA through 2011 as part of its 500 million USD aid commitment for 2006-11. Germany would consider to maintain its ODA commitments at about 100 million USD for the 2008-09, while Ireland put Viet Nam on a list of nine priority countries to enjoy national assistance, with an aid commitment of 133.6 million USD. PM Dung said the leaders of the three European countries had agreed to strengthen cooperation with Viet Nam in the fields of education and training, health, culture, science and technology, judicial reform, transportation, environment, energy and telecommunications, and advance cooperation between Vietnamese and European universities. The three countries’ leaders appreciated the contributions of overseas Vietnamese and affirmed that their governments would create positive conditions for the Vietnamese community to do business under the law by stabilising their living conditions and protecting their lawful rights.-Enditem
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