Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang (R) and Italian Undersecretary for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Maria Tripodi (Photo: VNA)The two sides expressed their delight that the consultationwas held on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of theestablishment of the bilateral diplomatic ties, and the 10th founding anniversaryof the Strategic Partnership.
They highly appreciated outstanding results in bilateral economiccooperation with the two countries becoming each other's important tradingpartner in the region. Two-way trade reached more than 6.2 billion USD in 2022, up 11% year-on-year, thanks to positive impacts of the European Union-VietnamFree Trade Agreement (EVFTA).
Hang affirmed Vietnam hopes to develop and deepen itsStrategic Partnership with Italy – a member state with an important role in theEU. She proposed the two sides step up delegation exchanges; maintain theefficiency of bilateral cooperation mechanisms in the fields of diplomacy,defence, economy and science and technology; and coordinate together in organising celebrations this year.
Regarding socio-economic recovery prospects and richpotential for the bilateral cooperation, the two sides agreed to work with eachother to effectively implement the EVFTA towards a goal of 7 billion USD inbilateral trade as set by the two Prime Ministers during their meeting lastDecember.
Hang also suggested Italy soon ratify the EU-VietnamInvestment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) and push for the European Commission(EC)’s early removal of its ‘yellow card’ warning against Vietnamese seafoodexports.
Tripodi, in turn, affirmed that the Italian Governmentsupports the early completion of internal procedures for the ratification ofthe EVIPA, and encourages Italian businesses to promote investment in Vietnam.
She expressed her hope that the two sides will convene a meeting of the joint committee for economic cooperation in 2023, and continue to provide development credit forVietnam in water resource management and sustainable regional development.
The two countries' officials posing for a photo (Photo: VNA)The two officials also exchanged views on measures tointensify cooperation in security-defence, science-technology,culture-education and tourism.
They agreed to continue effectively carrying out existing mechanisms such as the joint committee for scientific and technological cooperation and the defencepolicy dialogue, and soon approve a cultural collaboration programme for the 2023-2025period, and an action programme for educational cooperation for this period.
They also reached consensus on the maintenance of close coordinationat multilateral forums, particularly in the UN organisations. Sharing opinionson regional and international issues of mutual concern, the two sides stressedthe importance of maintaining peace, stability and security, including marine security; supporting thesettlement of disputes via peaceful means in accordance with international law,especially the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
Within the framework of her visit to Italy, Hang also had a working session with the Vietnamese embassy andagencies in the host country./.
VNA
