Vietnamese, Chinese provinces foster cooperation

Beijing (VNA) – Senior officials of four border Vietnamese province and China’s Guangxi have met in the Chinese city of Guilin on the occasion of the Lunar New Year to increase exchange and promote cooperation between the sides.

The February 23-24 meeting, the third of its kind, saw Vice Secretary of the Party Committee of Quang Ninh province Do Thi Hoang, Secretary of the Party Committee of Lang Son province Lam Thi Phuong, Secretary of the Party Committee of Cao Bang province Lai Xuan Mon and Secretary of Party Committee of Ha Giang province Trieu Tai Vinh of Vietnam, and Secretary of the Party Committee of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Peng Qinghua.

Also on the occasion, the ninth session of joint working committee of the four border Vietnamese provinces and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, and a business forum of the localities took place.

At conferences and workshops within the framework of the New Year meeting, the Vietnamese and Chinese localities reviewed their cooperation since the second meeting last February in Ha Long city of Quang Ninh province, as well as the promotion of exchanges between border Vietnamese provinces and Guangxi

They agreed to maintain the New Year meeting as an annual event, and exchange of visits to increase political trust among the localities. They also agreed that in 2018, the localities need to continue implementing common perceptions of the two countries’ leaders, deepening friendship exchanges and substantial cooperation, promoting the border areas' development and enriching the Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

The localities’ leaders consented to foster cooperation in trade, construction of cross-border economic cooperation areas, upgrade of border gates and markets, cross border labour management, justice, agriculture, science, education, culture, health care, finance, toward lifting trade value between the Vietnamese provinces and Guangxi, which accounts for nearly 25 percent of the Vietnam-China trade turnover.

They reached consensus to submit the two countries’ governments a proposal on soon connecting railways and highways between localities, especially between Quang Ninh and Lang Son with Guangxi, to facilitate people’s travel and goods transportation.

The proposal also included cooperation between pairs of border gates, the pilot of one-stop border gate and extending time for goods clearance during peak periods as well as encouraging Guangxi businesses to invest in Vietnam, especially those with high and environmentally friendly technologies.

They also agreed to increase cooperation via the Party channel, enrich people-to-people exchange activities and organise youth friendship exchanges and festivals of people in border areas, as well as cooperation in press, combat illegal cross-border activities and maintain security and stability in border areas.

Some cooperation documents between Vietnamese and Chinese provinces were signed in the witness of the officials.

Participants agreed to hold the 2019 New Year meeting and the 10th session of the joint working committee in Lang Son city, Lang Son province. – VNA