NA Chairman’s visits create new momentum for growth of ties with Argentina, Uruguay: Ambassador
Buenos Aires (VNA) – National Assembly (NA)
Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue’s visits to Argentina and Uruguay are expected to create
new motivation for the growth of ties between Vietnam and the two Latin
American countries, stated Vietnamese Ambassador to Argentina and Uruguay Duong
Quoc Thanh.
In an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency, Ambassador
Thanh said that the visits, spanning from April 23-28, are the most important
highlights of the activities to celebrate the 50th anniversary of
diplomatic relations with Argentina and 30-year ties with Uruguay.
These are the first by a high-ranking leader of Vietnam to Argentina
since 2010 and also the first to Uruguay since the two countries set up their
diplomatic relations, he said.
According to the diplomat, Argentina is one of the first
three Latin American countries to set up diplomatic relations with Vietnam,
after Cuba and Chile, before Vietnam’s reunification in 1975.
In the late 90s of the last century, the two countries
opened embassies in each other's capitals and bilateral relations developed
increasingly and comprehensively in the fields of politics, economy, culture
and people-to-people exchange.
In 2010, the two sides lifted their relations to a
comprehensive partnership, paving the way for the breakthrough growth in their
trade ties with two-way trade surging to 4.8 billion USD in 2022 from only 918
million USD in 2010, making Vietnam the fourth largest trade partner of
Argentina in Asia and turning Argentina into the third most important trade partner
of Vietnam in the Latin American region.
In the overall bilateral relations, parliamentary diplomacy plays
an outstanding role with a high-level visit of NA Chairman Nguyen Van An in
2006 and those by NA Vice Chairmen Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan and Do Ba Ty in 2014 and
2018, respectively. The visits contributed to strengthening mutual
understanding between leaders and peoples of the two sides, enabling the two
countries to share experience on the role of the parliament in law-building and
supervision activities, helping create a favourable legal corridor for the
bilateral economic relations.
Amid the unexpectedly changing international situation, the relationship between
Vietnam and Argentina is considered a model for the South-South partnership and
boasts great development potential.
The strengths of the two countries can supplement each other,
especially in agriculture, mining, science and technology. The ongoing visit by
NA Chairman Hue, who is being accompanied with leaders of many ministries,
sectors and localities, is believed to create momentum for the two countries to
make better use of their potential, making their relationship more substantive
and effective for the benefit of the two peoples, for peace and stability in each
region as well as in the world.
Meanwhile, Uruguay, despite its small population of only over
3 million, is the Latin American country with highest per-capita income and
the leading in trade liberalisation among Southern Common Market (Mercosur)
members. Vietnam and Uruguay have shared many common economic interest and showed
mutual support at international forums.
The Vietnamese top legislator’s visit aims to not only
promote the partnership between the two countries in general and the two legislatures
in particular, but also to strengthen bilateral parliamentary diplomacy with talks with Mercosur Parliament President and Vice Presidents representing member
countries.
The Uruguay side shows the special respect to NA Chairman Hue,
as the Montevideo City Council will award the title of Honourary Citizen of the
city to the Vietnamese top legislator. Alongside, Uruguay has also repeatedly
expressed its interest to strengthen relations with localities of Vietnam.
Ambassador Thanh said that Vietnam and Argentina and Uruguay
shared the interest to strengthen their comprehensive cooperation to match each
other’s potential.
Due to lack of information of each other and mutual
understanding, cooperation opportunities and potential between Vietnam and the two
Latin American countries have yet to be fully tapped. NA Chairman Hue’s visit
is considered an important stepping stone for Vietnam to get closer to
Argentina and Uruguay in particular and Latin American countries in general,
thus effectively implementing Vietnam’s policy of diversifying and
multilateralising economic and trade relations, enhancing the country’s
position in the global supply and production chains, he said.
The visits also meet the aspirations of the two Latin
American countries in bolstering economic relations with Asia, for which Vietnam
is willing to act as a bridge, stated the diplomat./.