Vice State President Nguyen Thi Doan and her entourage left Hanoi on the evening of Oct. 16, 2010 for an official visit to Bulgaria from Oct. 16-21 and attending the 13 th Francophone Summit in Montreux, Switzerland, from Oct. 21-24.

Vice President Doan’s visit to Bulgaria, which takes place when the two countries are celebrating the 60 th anniversary of their diplomatic ties, once again confirms Vietnam’s consistent foreign policy of enhancing the relationship with traditional friends, including Bulgaria.

While in Bulgaria , Vice President Doan will pay a courtesy visit to President Georgi Parvanov, hold talks with Vice President Angel Marin and meet National Assembly Deputy Chairman Pirinski as well as Velico Turnovo City Mayor Rumen Pashev. She will also attend the Vietnam-Bulgaria business forum and visit the University of National and World Economy.

The 13 th Francophone Summit takes place in the context of peace , cooperation and development as a major trend and on the occasion of the 40 th anniversary of the International Organisation of the Francophone (OIF).

At the summit, Vietnam is expected to make active contributions to promoting development cooperation in politics, culture and economics in the Francophone community and expanding bilateral ties with French-speaking countries.

Vice State President Doan will deliver a speech at the event’s opening ceremony and have bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the event./.