Duringtalks with the Iranian parliament leader following a welcome ceremony in Hanoion April 16, NA Chairwoman Ngan lauded the effective implementation of the JointComprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), known as Iran nuclear deal, which shesaid, has facilitated socio-economic development of Iran.
Shecalled for close coordination between the two countries to lift two-way tradeto 2 billion USD with attention given to specific fields.
TheVietnamese NA leader expressed the wish to soon receive Iran’s diplomatic notesupporting Vietnam’s run for a seat in the United Nations Security Council for2020-2021, as agreed by the two countries’ leaders.
Larijani,for his part, congratulated the Vietnamese NA on successfully holding the 26th Annual Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum.
Hesaid he believed that the two countries will achieve the trade target, addingthat Iran can assist Vietnam in the field of oil and gas, and wants to learnfrom Vietnam’s experience in agriculture.
TheIranian parliament speaker suggested boosting ties in potential fields such aspharmaceuticals, medical equipment, bank connectivity, tourism-culture, film,television, and exchange of lecturers and students.
Hesaid while the two sides had operated several chartered flights, they need toconsider launching direct flight service to step up economic, trade and tourismdevelopment.
Bothsides agreed to enhance the exchange of all-level visits and coordinate more closelyat global and regional forums, including the Inter-Parliamentary Union.
Chairwoman Ngan said at recent Non-AlignedMovement (NAM) meetings, some NAM members outside the Southeast Asian regionobjected to ASEAN’s update on the Southeast Asian section in the meetings’documents.
She said the action ran counter to thepractice and principles of the NAM which is solidarity, independence and notunder pressure or intervention from outside.
She asked Iran to continue supporting andprotecting the aforementioned principles for the sake of the NAM solidarity inthe time ahead.
The two leaders said although bilateral tradereached 164.6 million USD in 2017, up 41 percent from the previous year, the figurehas yet to match their huge potential.
Speaker Larijani said the statistics haven’tfully reflected the actual bilateral trade revenue since many Vietnameseproducts in Iran were imported via a third country. He noted the IranianGovernment is creating conditions for Vietnamese tourists, including grantingvisas at ports of entry. If the Vietnamese Government also provides similarconditions, bilateral trade will increase, he said.
Chairwoman Ngan said Iran is a populous MiddleEastern country while Vietnam is a populous nation in Southeast Asia. Theyshould prioritise the trading of the goods of each side’s strength and speed upthe settlement of payment hurdles, while encouraging market survey, tradepromotion and investment activities between the two countries’ businesses.
She said the fields of information technologyand telecommunications boast major cooperation potential. Vietnam wants to makebilateral partnership in these spheres into a breakthrough in bilateral ties,thereby stimulating cooperation in other fields.
Vietnam’s military-run telecom group Viettel isvery interested in the telecom market of Iran, she said, asking Iran to createfavourable conditions for Viettel to take part in telecom projects in theMiddle Eastern nation.
Larijani said his country will support theVietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) to reactivate the Dananproject. His visit this time is also meant to listen to opinions of Vietnamesebusinesses interested in investing in Iran so as to remove obstacles and strengthenpartnership.
Iran is ready to provide scholarships forVietnamese students to study the Persian language and other subjects, continueexchanging university lecturers and students, and step up cultural and tourismcooperation through organising exhibitions, film screening and other culturalevents.
Regarding parliamentary ties, Chairwoman Nganaffirmed that parliamentary relations are an important channel in Vietnam’sforeign policy. She expressed his hope that the two parliaments will bolsterdelegation exchanges at all levels, especially between specialized committeesto share legislative and supervisory experience.
She noted that the 14th NA of Vietnam had set upan 8-member Vietnam-Iran parliamentary friendship group chaired by ViceChairman of the NA’s Judicial Affairs Committee Nguyen Van Pha, adding that thetwo sides should further bring into play the role of their parliamentaryfriendship groups in enhancing cooperation between the two parliaments and thetwo countries.
The two leaders also agreed to bolstersupervising and push the effective implementation of the signed agreements,including the deals reached by the countries’ inter-governmental committee.
Regional and international issues of sharedconcern were also discussed during the talks. Chairwoman Ngan said the East Seais a shipping route linking Europe, the Middle East and Africa with East Sea, whichis used for the transportation of 50 percent of all the goods delivered by seaaround the world.
Keeping peace, stability, security and safety ofnavigation in and overflight over the East Sea is the common interest of allcountries inside and outside the region, she said, stressing that Vietnamadvocates the settlement of East Sea disputes by peaceful means, in line withinternational law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, andwith respect for diplomatic and legal processes along with the rights andlegitimate interests of relevant parties.
Sharing the view, Speaker Larijani said inresolving conflicts and disputes, Iran prioritise diplomatic solutions.
At the end of the talks, Chairwoman Ngan acceptedan invitation to visit Iran from the Iranian Speaker, saying that she willarrange time for the visit.
The Vietnamese NA leader is to chair abanquet for the Iranian guests in the evening the same day.-VNA