Hanoi (VNA) — National Assembly (NA) Chairman Tran Thanh Man on June 18 received newly appointed Canadian Ambassador to Vietnam Jim Nickel, expressing confidence that the two countries will continue to expand cooperation and bring their Comprehensive Partnership to new heights.
During the reception, Chairman Man extended his regards to Canada's Governor General, Speakers of the House of Commons and Senate, and the Canadian people. He also commended Ambassador Nickel’s efforts to promote bilateral cooperation.
The top legislator said he is pleased with the strong development of Vietnam–Canada relations in recent years, noting that high-level exchanges and cooperation across various channels have been maintained effectively, helping strengthen mutual understanding and trust.
Two-way trade has grown rapidly, reaching 8.6 billion USD in 2025, making the two countries important trading partners. Cooperation in science and technology, education, and training has also progressed positively. Legislative ties have continued to deepen, marked by the establishment of parliamentary friendship groups in both countries.
Chairman Man affirmed that Vietnam considers Canada one of its important partners, stressing that the two nations share common interests in peace, stability, the rule of law, diversification, and multilateralisation. He highlighted significant potential for cooperation in energy, green growth, innovation, and high technology.
The NA Chairman underscored the need to make better use of opportunities provided by the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) to broaden cooperation for mutual benefit. Such efforts, he said, would maintain peace, stability, cooperation, and development in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.
He called on the Canadian ambassador to continue promoting collaboration in key areas, including energy, science and technology, innovation, the green economy, and high-quality human resources development.
Regarding parliamentary relations, Chairman Man thanked Canada for its support in improving Vietnam’s legal framework and enhancing the capacity of NA agencies. He proposed increased delegation exchanges, closer cooperation between specialised committees, stronger engagement of parliamentary friendship groups, and continued coordination at regional and global inter-parliamentary forums.
For his part, Nickel congratulated the host on his election as Chairman of the 16th-tenure NA, as well as on the success of the 14th National Party Congress and the elections of deputies to the 16th National Assembly and People’s Councils for the 2026–2031 term.
The ambassador reaffirmed that Canada views Vietnam as a key partner in ASEAN and an important bridge for strengthening Canada–ASEAN relations. He agreed with Chairman Man’s assessment of the promising prospects for bilateral cooperation and noted that both countries share strong interests in maintaining peace, stability, free trade, a rules-based international order, and strategic autonomy.
Nickel pledged that Canada would work closely with Vietnam to deepen cooperation in sustainable supply chains, food and energy security, climate change response, and legislative exchanges, while strengthening coordination at multilateral forums, particularly within the CPTPP and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum./.
