Since bilateral diplomatic ties wereset up on March 23, 1973, Vietnam and Italy have become increasingly importantpartners of each other in all spheres and cooperated closely in both bilateraland multilateral aspects.
The upgrade of bilateral relations toa strategic partnership in January 2013 is considered a historic step heraldingan important journey of their connections and promoting the intensive,comprehensive, effective, and sustainable development of cooperation.
Addressing the event, VUFO President Phan Anh Son said Italy is an importantpartner and a faithful friend of the Vietnamese people. He described people-to-peopleexchanges as a highlight of the countries’ relations and a contribution to theirmutual understanding.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Italy donated nearly 3 million vaccine doses toVietnam while the Vietnamese Government and people gave medical masks as assistancefor the European country. Both sides supported each other to surmount thepandemic, he noted.
To develop their relations both extensivelyand intensively, Son perceived that the countries should keep reinforcing thefoundation of their cooperation, which is a traditional, close-knit, andextremely precious friendship nurtured by generations of their leaders and peoples.
In the time ahead, VUFO will continue working closely with Italian partners andorganisations to diversify people-to-people diplomatic activities to bolster multifacetedcooperation, he went on.
For his part, Italian Ambassador MacroDella Seta said this year, the two countries have marked the 50th anniversaryof their diplomatic relations via a wide range of programmes, includingcultural events and initiatives and high-level visits.
Notably, President Vo Van Thuong paidan official visit to Italy in July during which the two sides issued a joint statementon strengthening their strategic partnership, the diplomat added./.