London (VNA) – Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State Catherine West has praised Vietnam’s impressive economic achievements and affirmed the UK's commitment to enhancing bilateral cooperation while meeting with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang in London on March 17.
The meeting took place within the framework of Vietnamese Standing Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Hoa Binh’s working visit to the UK.
Hang expressed her pleasure at meeting the British official again and thanked the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) for its support and coordination in organising Deputy PM Binh’s visit.
She believed that the trip would be a success, further deepening the Vietnam-UK Strategic Partnership and bolster economic, trade, and investment cooperation between the two countries.
For her part, West applauded Vietnam’s impressive economic progress, noting that the UK's business community sees the two nations hold great potential for expanding cooperation. She also expressed her desire to visit Vietnam in the coming time.
Regarding Vietnam’s plan to build financial centres, Hang said that through the visit of Deputy PM Binh, the Vietnamese delegation hoped to gain valuable insights from the UK’s expertise and attract British businesses to contribute to the building, development, operation of the regional and international financial centres in the time ahead.
In response, the British official called Vietnam’s initiative a strategic step and affirmed the UK’s readiness to facilitate connections with British enterprises in the financial sector.
Regarding climate change response, Hang highly valued the UK’s role as the coordinator in establishing the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) between Vietnam, the G7, and international partners.
She called on the UK to continue prompting G7 members, international financial institutions, and private investors to support Vietnam’s Resource Mobilisation Plan (RMP), adopted at the 28th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28).
The diplomat also underlined the importance of the UK's assistance in policy development, human resource training, financial access, and technological advancements for Vietnam’s green transition and sustainable development.
On this occasion, West inquired about Vietnam’s policies on improving the investment environment, and developing green and renewable energy.
The two sides also discussed international and regional issues of mutual concern, including the East Sea issue./.
