The host said the visit is a vivid manifestationof the long-standing friendship founded by Prime Minister Jawarhalal Nehru andPresident Ho Chi Minh and fostered by generations of leaders and the people ofthe two countries.
Kovind expressed his delight at visitingVietnam, his first destination in Southeast Asia since he took office in July2017.
Both sides shared the view that bilateral tiesare growing strongly in diverse areas, especially since the establishment of thestrategic partnership in 2007 and the upgrade of bilateral ties to the level ofa comprehensive strategic partnership in 2016.
They agreed to fully deliver on high-levelpolitical commitments and those in adopted political framework documents, andto further tap into potential and advantages– including the Action Plan of theComprehensive Strategic Partnership for the 2017-2020 period – so as to deepenbilateral links.
The two countries will also facilitate all-levelvisits and step up coordination via the Party, State, Government, NationalAssembly and local channels, as well as people-to-people exchange.
As India is now one of the top 10 trade partnersof Vietnam, host and guest together believed that two-way trade will soon hit15 billion USD.
They suggested increasing trade promotion,especially in energy, renewable energies, and high-quality agriculture, andencouraged the Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group and the Oil and Natural GasCorporation of India to actively explore oil and gas in Vietnam, as well asseek cooperation models with third countries.
The two sides agreed on the importance ofpromoting connectivity and accelerating procedures to help Vietjet soon launch itsdirect flights between Ho Chi Minh City and New Delhi.
Host and guest spoke highly of activities launchedby each country’s cultural research centre in Hanoi and New Delhi.
The Indian President thanked Vietnam for holdingactivities celebrating the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi this yearand the annual International Day of Yoga.
Impressed by his visit to My Son sanctuary, the UNESCO-recognisedworld cultural heritage site, Kovind lauded the joint work to effectivelylaunch a project on preserving the relic site.
The Vietnamese leader hailed India’s support forthe Cham community, including the building of Cham community houses and schools,as well as Cham cultural studies in the central province of Ninh Thuan.
The two leaders affirmed to continue their support for the localities,friendship and people’s organisations, and scholars and researchers of the twocountries towards enhancing collaboration and creating favourable conditionsfor their press agencies to increase activities in each nation.
The two sides agreed to maintain the annual exchange of youth delegations toenable younger generations of the two countries to explore each other’s historiesand cultures.
The Indian side pledged to continue providing scholarships for Vietnam throughthe Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme and the CulturalExchange Programme’s General Cultural Scholarship Scheme (CEP/GCSS), as well asthose for students and postgraduates from ASEAN countries to pursue doctoralcourses in India.
Host and guest hailed the defence-security cooperation as strategic, effective,and practical, and agreed to step up collaboration and support in traininghuman resources and realising the affiliation between the two nations’ armedservices.
The Indian side said it is willing to share its experience in organising andtraining UN peacekeeping forces, as well as assisting Vietnam in addressing itspost-war consequences.
The two sides applauded the implementation of a 100 million USD credit packageto build high-speed patrol vessels for Vietnam’s border guards and agreed tosoon organise the first marine security dialogue.
Party General Secretary and President Trong spoke highly of India’s importantrole and voice at international forums. The two sides affirmed to continueclose coordination and mutual support at multilateral forums, particularly theUnited Nations. They also consented to support each other in their bids tobecome a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for 2020-2021 (forVietnam) and 2021-2022 (for India).
The Indian President stressed that Vietnam is a pillar in its “Act East” policy,as well as a key partner of the country in ASEAN.
The Vietnamese leader welcomed India’s stance on the East Sea issue over theyears, suggesting the South Asian nation continue backing the policies ofVietnam and ASEAN regarding this issue.
After the talks, the two leaders witnessed the signing of numerous documents,including a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Vietnamese Ministryof Information and Communications and the Indian Ministry of Communications oncooperation in the communications sector, and another between the Ho Chi MinhNational Academy of Politics in Hanoi and the New Delhi-based Jawarhalal NehruUniversity on collaboration in academic research and exchange of lecturers andstudents.
The Department of External Affairs under the Vietnamese Ministry of ForeignAffairs and the Indian Chamber of Commerce (INCHAM) in Vietnam inked a MoU oncreating channels to boost the investment and business climate in Vietnameselocalities, while another agreement was also signed between the Vietnam Chamberof Commerce and Industry and the All India Association of Industries onstepping up bilateral trade and investment collaboration. –VNA