Party, State leader welcomes Dutch Prime Minister
Vietnamese Party General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong (R) hosts Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte
Apr 10 2019
Party General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong hosted a reception for the visiting Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, in Hanoi on April 9, during which the former hailed the latter’s second visit amid effective and dynamic cooperation between the two countries.
The Dutch PM said that he is impressed by Vietnam’s current development
while showing his delight at the sound development of bilateral
relations between the two nations in recent times, especially in
trade-investment and strategic cooperation fields, such as climate
change adaptation, water management, sustainable agriculture, and food
security.
Vietnam is one of the Netherlands’ most important partners in the region, he added.
The guest noted with satisfaction the
attraction of the Vietnamese market in particular and ASEAN market in
general for Dutch businesses and partners and expressed his confidence
that both sides will step up close cooperation in the time ahead.
In reply, Party General Secretary and
President Nguyen Phu Trong extolled the Netherlands’ continued role as
the biggest European investor in Vietnam, the second largest European
trading partner, as well as being one of the major export markets of the
Southeast Asian country.
He hailed the building of a comprehensive
partnership between the two sides to augment cooperation and meet the
development requirements of the two countries, especially in areas with
huge potential, such as renewable energy, high-quality agriculture, the
food industry, seaport and logistics services, and smart urban
development.
He showed his appreciation for the close
coordination between the two countries at multilateral forums, including
the United Nations, ASEAN, and the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM),
suggesting the Dutch side actively urge the European Union (EU) to
finalize the legal review and procedures towards signing the EU-Vietnam
Free Trade Agreement and the Investment Protection Agreement between
Vietnam and the EU.
-VOV