Hanoi (VNA) - Deputy Foreign Minister Le Thi Thu Hang held a meeting with Irene Piki, Deputy Minister to the President of Cyprus, on September 8 as part of her working trip to the European country.
The two sides highlighted the significance of the visit, the first delegation exchange between the two countries in a decade, as Vietnam and Cyprus celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations, marked by fruitful developments.
Deputy FM Hang praised Cyprus for its natural beauty and dynamic growth, and the achievements of its Vision 2035 in science, fintech, innovation, digital transformation, and maritime development.
She proposed expanding exchanges at all levels and affirmed the Foreign Ministry’s readiness to work closely with Cyprus to create new momentum in bilateral cooperation.
Congratulating Vietnam on the 80th anniversary of its August Revolution and National Day, Piki expressed admiration for Vietnam’s struggle for national liberation in the past as well as its national construction and development today, while also sharing Cyprus’s current socio-economic achievements.
She highlighted the friendship between Vietnam and Cyprus, noting ample room to boost cooperation, especially in economic ties. She proposed stronger collaboration in science - technology, innovation, fintech, pharmaceuticals, and education.
Piki agreed to work with Vietnam to speed up the signing of cooperation documents, including a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on political consultations between the two foreign ministries, a double taxation avoidance agreement, and an MoU on labour cooperation; and boost coordination in organising economic activities such as business forums and roundtables alongside high-level visits.
Both sides also agreed to effectively exploit incentives from the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) to improve market access for Vietnamese and Cypriot goods. They also pledged to push for early ratification of the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) to spur investment between Vietnam, the EU, and Cyprus in particular; and urged EU members to back Vietnam’s call for the European Commission to lift the “yellow card” on its seafood exports.
They exchanged views on regional and international issues of common concern, agreeing to maintain close coordination and support each other at multilateral forums, particularly the UN, ASEAN, and the EU.
Regarding the East Sea issue, the two sides underscored the importance of the East Sea to international maritime traffic and affirmed support for the stance of Vietnam and ASEAN on settling disputes by peaceful measures in line with international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS 1982), contributing to maintaining peace, stability, security, and freedom of navigation and aviation in the region.
The same day, Deputy FM Hang met with Minister of Labour and Social Insurance of Cyprus Yiannis Panayiotou, during which she thanked the Cypriot government for creating favourable conditions for more than 7,000 Vietnamese living in the country, and expressed her delight at their integration and contributions to the host nation’s socio-economic development.
She called on the Cypriot government to continue supporting the Vietnamese community in settling down, integrating into society, raising minimum incomes, and accessing full social welfare benefits.
Panayiotou highly valued the Vietnamese workforce in Cyprus and expressed his hope to attract more Vietnamese workers, expanding into sectors such as services and healthcare. He agreed to enhance cooperation in training high-quality human resources. He also agreed to accelerate negotiations and soon sign an MoU on recruiting Vietnamese workers to Cyprus, providing an important legal framework for long-term cooperation./.
VNA
