Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh will lead a high-ranking Vietnamese delegationto attend the ASEAN - Gulf Cooperation Council Summit (ASEAN-GCC) and pay a visit to SaudiArabia from October 18- 20, at the invitation of Saudi Arabian King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
The visit holds significance in further strengthening cooperativeties between two leading organisations in Southeast Asia and the Gulf region, fosteringcollaboration, enhancing political trust, and improving the effectiveness ofcooperation between Vietnam and Saudi Arabia.
The upcoming Summit in Riyadh will mark the first time thatleaders from ASEAN and GCC member states have come together.
Sharon Seah, a senior member and coordinator of the ASEANStudies Centre at the Yusof Ishak Institute of Southeast Asian Studies(ISEAS-Yusof Ishak) based in Singapore, expressed her belief that the leaders will adopt anaction plan for the upcoming period, aiming to create a new milestone in bilateralcooperation.
Vietnamese Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Dang Xuan Dung said documentsto be reached at the Summit will provide a solid foundation and further elevatethe relationship between the two blocs, particularly in areas with high potential,such as the economy, trade, culture, and people-to-people exchanges.
All six GCC member countries are Vietnam's prioritypartners in the Middle East, with broad-ranging links across various areas,including politics, diplomacy, trade, investment, official development assistance (ODA),and labour.
At present, about 11,000 Vietnamese labourers are workingin GCC countries. Vietnam is in the process of negotiating a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA) with the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
As part of the broader framework of ASEAN-GCC cooperation,the close partnership between Vietnam and Saudi Arabia over the past 24 yearshas made significant strides.
Two-way trade surpassed 2.7 billion USD last year, up 32.4%annually. Vietnam mostly exports mobilephones and components, apparel, wood and wooden furniture, cashew nuts, rice,machinery, equipment, and spare parts while importing raw plastics,chemicals, and liquefied petroleum gas from the Middle East country.
Many corporations and companies from Saudi Arabia are nowinvolved in projects in Vietnam, such as the Zamil Steel Group and the Sabic Group. TheSaudi Fund for Development has provided preferential loans for 13 projects witha total value of over 181 million USD. Around 4,000-5,000 Vietnamese labourersare working in Saudi Arabia.
Against such a backdrop, PM Chinh's visit to Saudi Arabia isexpected to contribute to strengthening political trust, elevating the bilateralrelationship to a more substantial and effective level across various aspects,including politics, diplomacy, the economy, trade, investment, and labour, toward celebratingthe 25th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties next year.
In particular, the visit is anticipated to yield specific cooperationresults in trade and investment, with a focus on green growth, infrastructure,energy, industry, high technology, as well as create opportunities forVietnamese agricultural products to enter Saudi Arabia while making it easierfor Saudi Arabia to receive more skilled Vietnamese workers.
Ambassador Dungsaid the PM's activities will focus on investment, economic relations, labour,and more. Several memoranda of understanding are scheduled to be signed, andministries, agencies and businesses from both sides will have the opportunity towork and connect effectively together, especially through the business forumand other business meetings./.
