Vice State President Vo Thi Anh Xuan (L) and President Pro Tempore of US Senate Patty Murray at their meeting on March 13 in Washington, D.C(Photo: VNA)Xuan told Murray that Vietnam hopes for bilateralengagement to actively implement the countries’ new bilateral relations frameworkas well as agreements reached during President Joe Biden's visit to Vietnam inSeptember last year, bringing practical benefits to their peoples.
Suggesting the organisation of more parliamentary delegationexchanges to strengthen mutual understanding and trust, she underscoredVietnam's readiness for dialogue and exchange of ideas with the US on remainingdifferences.
The leader also proposed that the US government and congresscontinue to prioritise cooperation in addressing the consequences of war inVietnam, facilitating trade and investment relations with the nation, andpromptly recognising Vietnam as a market economy.
Welcoming the US's expanded relations with Asia-Pacific andpositive contributions to peace, stability, cooperation, and development in theregion, she called on the country to further support ASEAN's centrality, theASEAN-US comprehensive partnership, and the Mekong-US partnership.
For her part, Murray affirmed her strong support for the US’sefforts to enhance its friendship and cooperation with Vietnam over recent times, and pledged to continue joining the congress’s efforts to facilitate thedevelopment of the bilateral ties, including the implementation of the comprehensivestrategic partnership framework.
She also expressed interest in learning about Vietnam'ssituation and policy perspectives regarding sustainable development in theMekong Delta, climate change response, women empowerment, and addressingchallenges to peace, stability, and development in Southeast Asia.
At the meeting between Vice State President Vo Thi Anh Xuan and Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Elizabeth M. Allen in Washington DC on March 13. (Photo: VNA)In response, Xuan urged the US Department of State to closelywork with the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other units involved incarrying out the nations’ comprehensive strategic partnership, particularlytheir cultural, education, and people-to-people ties.
Allen revealed that the US will continue to make resources servingjoint projects with Vietnam a priority in terms of culture, education, andpeople-to-people relations.
She also informed Xuan of several important bilateral culturaland educational cooperation programmes planned for the near future, such asdeveloping the higher education and vocational education system, STEM (science,technology, engineering, and mathematics) education, cultural exchange, andheritage preservation.
Immediately after the meeting, Xuan, togetherwith the Under Secretary of State and Vietnamese Ambassador to the US NguyenQuoc Dung, witnessed the signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding oncultural cooperation and people-to-people relations between the VietnameseMinistry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the US Department of State./.
VNA
