Vietnamese Ambassador to India Pham Sanh Chau (L) in an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency. (Photo: VNA)
New Delhi (VNA) – The official visit to India by National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue demonstrates the importance that Vietnam attaches to its partnership with India in its external policy, Vietnamese Ambassador to India Pham Sanh Chau said, adding that the visit is expected to add a momentum to the cooperation between the two countries in all fields.
Granting an interview to Vietnam News Agency on the occasion of the NA leader's visit, the diplomat looked back at progress in bilateral ties since the two countries lifted their relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership five years ago.
In terms of politics, the two countries have shared high political trust, with India being one of the three comprehensive strategic partners of Vietnam currently.
In economy, two-way trade has hit 13 billion USD from only 200 million USD 20 years ago.
Meanwhile, both sides have made good progress in science-technology cooperation, including collaboration in nuclear security, agriculture as well as the production of fruit and livestock varieties, he noted.
The ambassador particularly underlined bilateral cooperation in people diplomacy, which has a long tradition especially when Buddhism is a traditional religion with great influence in Vietnam.
Finally, security-defence is a bright spot in the bilateral relationship, he said, noting that India has helped Vietnam train a large number officers and officials in different sectors.
The diplomat held that Vietnam and India share many similarities in viewpoint on regional and world situation. Currently, both countries are non-permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. Therefore, Vietnam and India have actively cooperated with each other over the recent past, he noted.
Ambassador Chau underlined that like never before, Vietnam and India should foster their partnership in security and defence, as India, with its rising role as a newly emerged power, has borne higher responsibilities for peace and security in the region. The diplomat expressed optimism about stronger collaboration between the two countries in protecting and promoting regional peace and security./.
VNA