Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc (R) meets Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne in Hà Nội on Thursday. – VNA/VNS Photo Thống Nhất HÀ NỘI – Việt Nam and Australia should increase trade and investment ties while stepping up cooperation in other important spheres such as education, culture and tourism, creating a firm foundation for the expansion and enhancement of comprehensive cooperation, said Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc. Meeting Australian Minister of Foreign Affairs Marise Payne in Hà Nội on Thursday, PM Phúc also suggested the two sides effectively uphold the current bilateral cooperation mechanisms. He asked the two sides to review the implementation of the Việt Nam-Australia action programme for 2016-19 and begin the building of an action programme to implement the strategic partnership in the next period with special measures and goals to deepen bilateral cooperation in all fields. Relations between Việt Nam and Australia have been developing fruitfully in recent years, PM Phúc said, adding that Australia has annually trained nearly 30,000 Vietnamese students. Two-way trade reached US$7.7 billion in 2018, a year-on-year rise of 19.3 per cent. Australia currently ranks 19th among 128 foreign investors in Việt Nam with total investment of over $1.84 billion, while Việt Nam is running 47 direct investment projects in Australia. PM Phúc spoke highly of Payne’s role in and significant contributions to promoting the Việt Nam-Australia strategic partnership. He welcomed Payne for selecting Việt Nam as one of the first countries to visit in the second week of her new working… [Read full story]
Leave a Reply