Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (second from left) at Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali (Source: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc arrived in Hanoi onOctober 12 afternoon, wrapping up his trip to attend the ASEAN Leaders’Gathering on the occasion of the annual meetings of the International MonetaryFund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) and his working visit to Indonesia fromOctober 11-12.
Addressing the ASEAN Leaders’Gathering, PM Phuc suggested the United Nations, the IMF and the WB coordinatewith ASEAN and Vietnam to accelerate the implementation of outcomes of the WorldEconomic Forum on ASEAN 2018 (WEF ASEAN), especially the business environmentharmony mechanism, the national incubator connectivity framework, andconnectivity on education systems and building of life-long learning systems inASEAN countries.
In the face of unpredictableglobal economic developments, PM Phuc proposed the IMF and the WB cooperatewith and give advice to ASEAN countries in building a regional macroeconomic riskwarning mechanism so as to improve self-reliance capacity and adaptation of theASEAN economy.
He urged the them to continue supportingand closely working with the bloc in infrastructure development, early disasterwarning and climate change response, narrowing development gaps, especially indigital gap, technology research and application, institutional reform andhigh-quality human resources training in order to grasp opportunities from thefourth Industrial Revolution.
PM Phuc also joined leaders ofother ASEAN countries at the opening ceremony of the IMF-WB annual meetings,and metASEAN leaders such as Cambodian PM Hun Sen, Malaysian PM MohamadMahathir and Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to discuss measures to boostbilateral ties and address several certain matters.
The Vietnamese leader alsoreceived IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde who appreciated Vietnam’spolicies to maintain its macro-economic stability.
During his working visit toIndonesia, PM Phuc held talks with President Joko Widodo, during which theyagreed to create a new breakthrough and make economic cooperation become a mainpillar of the Vietnam-Indonesia Strategic Partnership to soon raise two-waytrade to 10 billion USD.
They acknowledged new stepsforwards in cooperation in agriculture, education-training, connectivity, andagreed the need to further expand collaboration in potential areas such astraining labourers to meet demands of the digital economy, strengtheningtourism cooperation, and studying the opening of direct air services connectingmajor and tourist cities of the two countries.
The two sides also affirmed theimportance of maintaining peace and stability in the region, freedom ofnavigation and aviation in the East Sea, while closely coordinating with eachother as well as other relevant sides to ensure the full and effectivelyimplementation of the Declaration of the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC)and early conclusion of an effective, practical and legally-binding Code ofConduct in the East Sea (COC).
On this occasion, the Vietnamese PMalso received leaders of several Indonesian enterprises, including CiputraGroup and PT Nikko Sekuritas Indonesia.
The PM’s trip affirmed that Vietnamis an active and responsible member of ASEAN and demonstrates the importancethat Vietnam attaches to the world’s largest multilateral institutions as wellas the strategic partnership with Indonesia, thereby helping to promoteVietnam’s position in the region and the world.
It is also an illustration of Vietnam’shigh regard for the archipelago nation’s role and standing in the region andthe world, as well as the wish to coordinate closely with Indonesia and othercountries in building a Southeast Asian region of peace, stability, unity,prosperous development and sustainable development.-VNA
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