He affirmed that his country views Vietnam as an important partnerin Southeast Asia and declared support for the country in relationswith the European Union, as well as in the negotiations on a free tradedeal with the bloc.
The President pledged to backBulgarian investors to expand investment in Vietnam, especially inthe fields of energy, waste water treatment, pharmaceuticals, foodprocessing, science-technology, and tourism.
He alsocalled for Vietnamese investments in Bulgaria ’s seafood processingsector, noting that his country has such advantages as low land andlabour cost.
For her part, Vice President Doanspoke highly of the host’s visit to Vietnam last year, as well asPrime Minister Plamen Oresasky’s visit in April 2014, saying that thevisits pushed the growth of bilateral ties.
Bothsides agreed that in the future, the two countries should maintainregular exchanges of delegations at all levels and coordinate closely inorganising activities to celebrate 65 th anniversary of diplomaticties in 2015.
They agreed that bilateral trade andinvestment cooperation still remain below potential, which could beimproved once the Vietnam-EU free trade agreement is signed.
They concurred that collaboration in education and training is apriority in bilateral partnership, committing to creating favourableconditions for student exchanges.
PresidentPlevneliev highly valued contributions of the Vietnamese community tohis country, describing them a positive factor in national developmentas well as the growth of bilateral ties.
Both hostand guest agreed to enhance mutual support at regional and internationalforums, especially the United Nations and the Asia-Europe Meeting(ASEAM).-VNA