Vietnam, UK agree action plan for 2011
The seven areas of cooperation for 2011 include
political - diplomatic cooperation; global and regional issues; trade
and investment; sustainable socio-economic development cooperation;
education, training, science and technology; s ecurity and defence; and
people-to-people links.
Addressing the ceremony,
Ambassador Antony Stokes expressed his pleasure at the signing of the
Action Plan soon after the Strategic Partnership Declaration was signed
during Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem’s visit
to the UK last September.
“The Action Plan turns the high
level agreement of the Strategic Partnership into concrete detail,” the
ambassador said, saying he believed that the signing of the document
would heighten Vietnam-UK bilateral ties.
As agreed, the two
governments will continue to deliver concrete outcomes in traditional
areas of work such as education and trade and investment. Some
outstanding projects include: the launch of direct flights from Vietnam
to London in the second half of this year and the initial operations
of the UK - Vietnam International University in Da Nang
this year.
The launching of direct flights from Ho Chi Minh
City and Hanoi to London would be a positive stimulation not only
for tourism but also for trade and people-to-people links, Ambassador
Antony Stokes said.
The ambassador also informed reporters
of the Vietnam visit by the London’s Lord Mayor in March, which he
believed would bring huge opportunities for the Southeast Asia country
in infrastructure improvement to encourage economic growth and
investment, as the Lord Mayor is an expert in public-private
partnerships.
On the sidelines of the signing ceremony,
Ambassador Anthony Stokes said the visit would also bring in great
opportunities for British financial service companies to seek investment
in Vietnam, as London is known as a major world financial service
centre.
Also today, Dr Antony Stokes and Deputy Minister of
Industry and Trade Le Danh Vinh signed the agreed Minutes of the
UK-Vietnam Joint Economic Trade Committee meeting which took place in
London in late November, 2010. This event paves the way to deliver the
commitments to improve the business environment made by both sides at
that meeting./.