Cuban PM wraps up visit to Vietnam

Hanoi (VNA) – Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz left Ho Chi Minh City on October 2 afternoon, concluding his official visit to Vietnam since September 28.

During his stay in Vietnam, the leader held talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Minh Chinh, paid a courtesy call to Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, and separately met President Nguyen Xuan Phuc and National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue.

He was bestowed with Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh Order and attended a Vietnam-Cuba business forum. He also had a meeting with HCM City leaders and witnessed the signing of multiple agreements between the two countries.

In his reception for the Cuban leader, Party General Secretary Trong said his Vietnam visit will deepen the special friendship and cooperation between the two countries and Parties long nurtured by generations of Vietnamese and Cuban leaders, and affirmed that the Vietnamese Party, State and people forever treasure Cuba’s support to Vietnam's national struggle for independence and reconstruction.

Meeting President Phuc, the Cuban PM said his coutry wishes to further beef up the long-standing friendship and comprehensive partnership with Vietnam, adding Cuba hopes to learn from Vietnam’s experience in policy making and enforcement in socio-economic development, international integration and response to global economic challenges.

Amidst global uncertainties, Vietnam always keeps its solidarity with and backs its brother Cuba, Phuc said.

In his bilateral meeting, NA Chairman Hue told the Cuban leader that the Vietnamese NA will continue to coordinate closely with its Cuban counterpart at regional and international parliamentary forums and exchange experience in law making and supervision.

Holding talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Chinh, both sides expressed their delight at the progress the two countries have achieved in cooperation in agriculture, investment and health care as well as the effectiveness of the bilateral cooperation mechanism.

The two PMs agreed to maintain dialogues and high-level delegation exchanges and to enhance partnership via the two Parties’ theoretical conferences and meetings of the inter-governmental committees on economic and science-technology cooperation.

The two sides discussed ways to practically and effectively intensify cooperation in politics and diplomacy, national defence and security, trade and investment, health care, education and training, pharmaceuticals and others.

PM Chinh stated that Vietnam is ready to share experience with Cuba in making agriculture a key economic pillar.

The two leaders plan to create all possible conditions for investors of each other in the areas of tourism and industrial-park infrastructure development, manufacturing of construction materials and consumer goods, and renewable energy while seeking opportunities for partnership in other potential fields.

The two sides agreed to continue consulting and supporting each other at international and multilateral forums and backed one another’s stance on settling disputes through peaceful solutions based on international law and UN Charter.

PM Chinh later announced Vietnam will donate 5,000 tonnes of rice to help Cuba address current socio-economic challenges.

It was the first visit to a non-Latin American country since the Cuban leader took office in December 2019 and also the first by a Cuban high-level leader to Vietnam since 2018./.