(VOVworld)- Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro Moros is on an official visit to Vietnam from August 30-31 at the invitation of President Truong Tan Sang. The visit aims to strengthen bilateral friendship and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Venezuela.
Vietnam and Venezuela set up diplomatic ties in December 1989. Venezuelan people strongly supported Vietnam’s national liberation struggles through widespread solidarity movements across Venezuela. Sharing a lot of similarities despite being a hemisphere away, the two countries have continually consolidated their friendship and collaboration. Vietnam has always paid special attention to Venezuela’s poor-people oriented social reform policies and its leaders’ efforts to ensure social equality.
25 years of fine relations
Since 1989, Vietnam and Venezuela have regularly maintained contacts and delegation exchanges to promote political trust. The Vietnamese- Venezuelan Friendship Association was set up in 2006 to mark the late President Hugo Chavez’s visit to Vietnam. In May 2007, the two sides upgraded their relationship to a comprehensive partnership. Venezuelan Ambassador to Vietnam Jorge Rondon Uzcategui said:“According to President Hugo Chavez’s vision of foreign policy, Vietnam is Venezuela’s reliable partner in its national construction and economic development and a strategic ally in designing a multi-polar world of friendship and South-South cooperation”.
Based on strong political trust, Vietnam and Venezuela have implemented several cooperative agreements. Most typical is the Petro Macareo Joint Venture between the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) and the Venezuelan State Oil Company PDVSA. They also include joint projects on software production, IT, public lighting, solar energy, waterway transport infrastructure, and housing construction.
Two-way trade between Vietnam and Venezuela has grown steadily in the last three years. Their inter-governmental committee has signed more than 50 cooperative agreements on energy, oil and gas, agro-forestry, fisheries, ICT, culture, education, sports, and tourism. In a meeting in March, the two sides agreed to focus their bilateral cooperation on economics, energy, oil and gas, agriculture, and promoting Vietnam’s investment in Venezuela in the fields of manufacturing and assembling, electricity, electronics, and construction.
The two countries have always supported each other at international forums. Venezuela supported Vietnam’s joining the World Trade Organization, recognized Vietnam’s market economy status, and helped Vietnam become a Non-Permanent member of the UN Security Council for the 2008-2009 term and a member of the UN Human Rights Council for the 2015-2016 term. Vietnam always supports Venezuela’s national construction and development.
Bilateral ties grow sustainably
In 2014, Vietnam and Venezuela celebrated the 25th anniversary of their diplomatic ties and 50 years of meetings between the Vietnamese and Venezuelan people. Ambassador Jorge Rondon Uzcategui said the two countries have set up a sustainable and effective relationship within a short time thanks to similarities in their struggles for freedom and prosperity. That’s why the two peoples trust in the sustainable growth of their comprehensive partnership: “We are optimistic about the prospects of our bilateral ties in the medium and long term and find it essential to deepen bilateral ties in economics, finance, energy, technology, cultural, and agriculture. We believe that Vietnam and Venezuela will grow closer in the coming years and will continue to strengthen our comprehensive partnership in all fields”.
President Nicolas Maduro Moros’s ongoing visit to Vietnam is expected to boost the Vietnam-Venezuela comprehensive partnership.