Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Nguyen Thanh Phong (right) meets with Polish Ambassador to Vietnam Wojciech Gerwel. (Photo: hcmcpv.org.vn)Hanoi (VNA) – Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Nguyen Thanh Phong hosted a reception for newly-appointed Polish Ambassador to Vietnam Wojciech Gerwel on November 15.
At the meeting, Phong told Gerwel that he was pleased with the growing relations between Vietnam and Poland in multiple fields, particularly trade.
Last year, two-way trade between the two countries reached 2.3 billion USD, of which trade between HCM City and Poland contributed 170 million USD. Poland’s total investment in Vietnam doubled to 189 million USD from 2014 – 2017. It now operates four foreign direct investment projects, worth a total of 250 million USD, in the city.
However, both sides agreed that bilateral cooperation has yet to match the potential of Vietnam and Poland, and the two nations can do more to enhance the partnership.
The chairman expected, as an experienced diplomat who knows a lot about Vietnam, Gerwel would work to step up cooperation between the two countries and between the city and Poland in economics, trade, investment, culture, tourism, logistics and science and technology, during his mission here.
The ambassador, for his part, thanked Phong and other local leaders for supporting the Polish Agency of Investment and Trade to set up a new trade office in the city last year as it is important to bridge enterprises of the two sides and help them explore partnership.
As Poland has advantages in developing agriculture, food manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, shipbuilding and mining, he hoped the two sides would enhance cooperation in these sectors.
He also vowed to do his utmost to deepen bilateral ties. –VNA
VNA
