The Italian Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City hosted a ceremony to mark Italy’s Republic Day on June 2.

Addressing the event, Italian Consul General in HCM City Carlotta Colli reviewed milestones and salient achievements of her country and highlighted the flourishing ties between Italy and Vietnam.

She introduced the Milano Expo 2015 to the guests and said the event will be a good opportunity for the two sides to share experience in a range of fields, including trade, investment, water management and foodstuff.

The bilateral ties have been growing in all aspects over the past years, commented Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Le Thanh Liem.

He highlighted various cultural activities marking the 40 th anniversary of Vietnam-Italy diplomatic relations last year, adding that bilateral economic cooperation has also been boosted, with two-way trade in 2013 reaching 3.4 billion USD.

He expressed his hope that with the two sides’ willing and efforts, the bilateral ties will be further deepened in the coming time.

HCM City now has 15 projects invested by Italy with a combined capital of 57 million USD.-VNA