PM Pham Minh Chinh (R) and Italian Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry Francesco Lollobrigida (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh hosted a reception in Hanoi on March 1 for ItalianMinister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry Francesco Lollobrigida, calling for a further strengthening of bilateral ties, particularlyin the agricultural sector.
PMChinh reaffirmed Vietnam'scommitment to deepening its strategic partnership with Italy, believing thatLollobrigida's visit would solidify bilateral political, economic and traderelations, especially in agriculture.
Welcoming the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) oncooperation between the the VietnameseMinistry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Italian Ministry ofAgriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry, he urged them to concretise andeffectively realise the MoU to achieve new milestones in agriculturalcooperation, overcome challenges, and strive for a more balanced and mutuallybeneficial trade relationship.
The PM emphasisedthe importance of collaboration in deep processing of agricultural products,technology transfer, innovation, digital transformation, green economy andcircular economy in agriculture, and fostering connections between businesses todevelop agricultural economy.
Vietnam is ready to welcome a greater presenceof Italian farm produce to serve local consumers, he said.
Notingthat Vietnam is the first country to carry out the 1-million-ha low-emission,high-quality rice programme in the Mekong Delta, contributing to the globalclimate change adaptation, he suggested exploring regional agricultural cooperationbetween the two countries.
He also urged Italy to accelerate the European Union's removalof the yellow card warning on illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishingin Vietnam and hasten the approval of the EU-Vietnam Investment ProtectionAgreement (EVIPA).
On theglobal and regional issues, Chinh proposed continued cooperation to addressglobal challenges like climate change, food security and water security. Healso called for the effective implementation of cooperation activities withinthe framework of the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) Declaration between Vietnam and G7 countries.
Vietnamis ready to serve as a bridge to foster the development partnership betweenItaly and ASEAN - the current growth centre, as well as promote relations between Italy and African countries and other nations through the tripartitecooperation model in ensuring food security, he said.
Minister Lollobrigida,for his part, lauded Vietnam's significant potential and strengths inagriculture.
He expressed Italy's readiness to share experience,technology and machinery, crop varieties and livestock achievements withVietnam to develop sustainable agriculture with lower emissions and more addedvalues targeting premium markets. Italian universities are also prepared to trainVietnamese students in the field, he added.
The minister said Italy hopes to become Vietnam's leading agricultural partnerin the EU, believing that more Italian agricultural products would be present inVietnam and the Asia-Pacific. Italy will actively urge relevantEU agencies to remove the yellow card warning on Vietnamese seafood at theearliest, he added.
Italy isnow the third largest trade partner of Vietnam in the EU, behind Germany and theNetherlands. Meanwhile, Vietnam is Italy's biggest trade partner in ASEAN, withtwo-way trade surpassing 6 billion USD in 2023. In 2023, the two countriescelebrated the 50th anniversary of their diplomaticrelations and the 10th anniversary of bilateral strategicpartnership./.
