Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (second from right) introduces members of the Vietnamese delegation to French PM Jean Castex (C) (Photo: VNA)
Paris (VNA) – Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met with his French counterpart Jean Castex in Paris on the evening of November 3 (local time), during which he underlined the importance of relations with France in the
foreign police.
The two leaders briefed each other on the situation in each country and appreciated the mutual assistance activities between the two countries during the last period.
Castex said France will provide Vietnam with an additional 970,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine through the COVAX facility and 400,000 doses through a bilateral channel, bringing the total number of vaccines supported in Vietnam to date to more than 2 million. doses.
Chinh thanked the French government for helping Vietnam in the fight against COVID-19 and hoped France will continue to share its experience and help
Vietnam in the training of medical personnel, the transfer of vaccine production technology and adaptation to the post-pandemic context.
The two prime ministers discussed directions as well as measures to strengthen cooperation in the coming times in order to achieve more concrete results.
They agreed to jointly develop a master plan to create strong changes that will serve as the basis to take the bilateral relationship to a new high. They stressed the importance of strengthening the exchanges of high-level delegations, improving the effectiveness of dialogue mechanisms, expanding cooperation in all fields, strengthening close coordination on regional and international issues, actively support each other in multilateral forums and increase the frequency of flights connecting the two countries. They also welcomed the organization of the 12th Vietnam-France decentralized cooperation conference in Hanoi in 2022.
The two leaders agreed to implement practical measures to create more favorable conditions for bilateral trade and help businesses and goods of the two countries move closer to each other’s market. They proposed measures to promote cooperation projects in key areas, build long-term industrial partnerships on the basis of high technology transfer and mutual benefit, particularly in areas where France has strengths. and Vietnam on demand.
The French Prime Minister asked Vietnam to create favorable conditions for French companies to invest and implement cooperation projects in Vietnam, to strengthen cooperation in the field of defense and security and to promote relations between the agencies of the National Assembly, to promote collaboration in research, science and technology and to continue to facilitate the operations of the French Institute in Vietnam.
Chinh acknowledged France’s proposals, saying Vietnam wants effective support and cooperation from France. He thanked France for maintaining its commitment to official development assistance as well as preferential financial sources for Vietnam. He suggested that France maintain and further promote the implementation of health projects, and intensify bilateral cooperation in education and training. He said he hoped that France will create more favorable conditions for students to exchange, study and research in France, and increase the number of scholarships.
Interviews between Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Prime Minister Jean Castex (Photo: VNA)
The two Prime Ministers also exchanged views on international and regional issues of common interest, including the issue of the East Sea, stressing the need for countries to contribute to the maintenance of peace, stability and prosperity, and to ensure security, freedom of navigation and aviation and the peaceful settlement of international disputes on the basis of international law, in particular the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea ( UNCLOS).
Castex hailed Vietnam’s achievement in its role as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and once again thanked Vietnam for supporting France to become ASEAN’s development partner.
Meanwhile, Chinh thanked France for its support and coordination in multilateral forums and for its efforts to urge the European Commission (EC) to quickly withdraw its “yellow card” warning against Vietnamese fishing.
The two sides agreed to actively implement the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), accelerate the ratification of the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), in order to create momentum for trade and investment between Vietnam, France and the EU.
Prime Minister Chinh also shared the results of the participation of the high-level Vietnamese delegation to the 26th United Nations Conference of the Parties on Climate Change (COP26) which has just been held in the United Kingdom, and announced that the Vietnam was committed to developing and implementing policies and measures. promote international cooperation, and hopes that developed countries, including France, will continue to support Vietnam in this area.
PM Castex appreciated the contributions of the Vietnamese community in France.
Prime Minister Chinh invited the French Prime Minister to visit Vietnam and conveyed President Nguyen Xuan Phuc’s invitation to President Emmanuel Macron to visit this Southeast Asian country.
After the talks, the two PMs witnessed the signing of several documents, cooperation agreements and economic contracts between the two parties./.