Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) hosts a banquet for Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on his official visit to Vietnam in 2017 (Photo: VNA) Ottawa (VNA) – The attendance of PrimeMinister Nguyen Xuan Phuc at the G7 Outreach Summit and his visit to Canada asinvited by his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau is expected to expand thecooperation between the two countries, according to Donald Bobiash, AssistantDeputy Minister for Asia-Pacific at Global Affairs Canada.
In a recent interview with reporters fromVietnam News Agency in Canada, Bobiash said relations between the two countrieshave been developing in various fields from politics and diplomacy to trade,education and people-to-people exchanges.
One of the biggest milestones in the bilateralties was the official visit to Vietnam by Prime Minister Trudeau in 2017,during which the two nations’ leaders signed an agreement to lift bilateralties to a comprehensive partnership.
This year, Vietnam and Canada are celebratingthe 45th anniversary of diplomatic ties.
The invitation of Prime Minister Trudeau toPrime Minister Phuc to attend the summit demonstrates the desire of Canada toboost better relations with Vietnam, Bobiash said.
The Vietnamese community in Canada now numbersmore than 240,000 people and they have made active contributions to the localeconomy, he said.
There are a lot of cooperation opportunities ineducation with the increasing number of Vietnamese students in Canada.
The official also expressed his impressions ofVietnam’s economic growth – which is estimated at more than 6 percent annually.
The Southeast Asian country has a stronglygrowing middle class and big demand for made-in-Canada products.
Bobiash said he is willing to back win-win tradeties between the two countries.
Two-way trade exceeds 6 billion CAD at present,he said, adding that Vietnam is an important market for Canadian goods such asbuckwheat, canola oil, farm produce and aquatic products.
Vice versa, Canada imports a lot of outsourcedproducts from Vietnam such as mobile phones and electronic equipment.
The official affirmed that the Comprehensive andProgressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) that Vietnam andCanada are members will open up opportunities for the two countries to exchangetrade of their products.
The CPTPP will expand two-way trade flows byreducing tariffs on Canadian exports, particularly agricultural products. Itwill also create an equal playing ground for Vietnamese exports, he said,adding the opening of markets for each other is a win-win solution thatfacilitates trade.
According to Bobiash, a number of importanttopics will be discussed at the G7 Outreach Summit, affecting all nations inthe world, not only Canada and other G7 members.
He pointed to two most relevant topics toVietnam including ocean and climate change and building a safer and peacefulworld.
Cooperation between Vietnam and Canada willbring mutual benefits especially when promoted within the framework of theCPTPP and the comprehensive partnership agreement signed between their leadersin November 2017 in Vietnam, he added.-VNA
VNA
