Vietnam was seeking to further boost ties with the Russian parliament, particularly their committees, offices and parliamentarian friendship groups, said Vice Chairman of the National Assembly of Vietnam Uong Chu Luu.

Luu made this statement to a delegation from the Russian Federation Council, headed by Umakhanov Ilyas, First Deputy Chairman of the Council Committee for International Affairs, in Hanoi on Sept. 22.

Luu expressed his pleasure at the level of cooperation between Vietnamese and Russian parliaments. He said that cooperation at multilateral forums had been closer and more effective as the two nations worked together in a spirit of mutual support and harmony on regional and global issues.

He also expressed his joy at the Vietnam-Russia relationship, which was developing into a reliable, strategic partnership. Economic, trade, scientific, educational, cultural and tourism cooperation all saw strong development. Two-way trade between the two countries hit 1.64 billion USD in 2008 and is expected to reach 3 billion USD in 2010.

Umakhanov Ilyas, in Vietnam to attend the ongoing 31st General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA-31), said Russia attached importance to boosting relations with countries in the Asia Pacific region, including Vietnam.

He said the visit to Vietnam was an opportunity for the delegation of the Russian Federation Council to engage in discussions with relevant Vietnamese agencies about cooperation plans in many fields, including energy, oil and gas.

The same day, the delegation had working sessions with officials of some committees of the National Assembly of Vietnam./.