A cultural exchange gala was held in the Philippine capital city of Manila on July 12 to celebrate the 35 th anniversary of the diplomatic ties between Vietnam and the Philippines (July 12, 1976-2011).

The event was coorganised by the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee and the Vietnamese Embassy in the Philippines .

The gala featured performances of Vietnam ’s traditional music instruments such as T’rung, monochord, lithophone and bamboo flute and folk songs.

In the morning of the same day, a delegation of the HCM City People’s Committee led by its Vice Chairman Hua Ngoc Thuan paid a courtesy visit to the Manila ’s mayor.

The mayor took the occasion to encourage Vietnamese businesses to invest in the city in the coming time.

For his part, Thuan stressed that the friendship and cooperation between the two cities will continue prospering in the spirit of their twinning agreement reached in 1994.

As members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Vietnam and the Philippines will actively contribute to enhancing peace, security and cooperation in the region, he said.

The Vietnamese delegation is scheduled to attend a seminar on economic cooperation between the two countries’ businesses on July 13./.