Vietnamese Embassy in Israel celebrates National Day

Tel Aviv (VNA) – The Embassy of Vietnam in Israel hosted a get-together in the coastal city of Tel Aviv on August 28 to celebrate the 73rd anniversary of Vietnam’s National Day (Sept. 2) and the 25th founding anniversary of Vietnam-Israel diplomatic ties (July 12).

Attended the event were Israeli governmental officials as well as representatives of the Vietnamese community and international friends.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Israel Cao Tran Quoc Hai highlighted the remarkable achievements that Vietnam has gained over the past time.

He said the country had overcome a lot of challenges to maintain its annual average economic growth of 7 percent, thus significantly improving the living standards of people, ensuring national security, politics and social stability.

Vietnam has transformed from a food importer to a leading exporter in the world with key farm produce such as rice, coffee, aquatic products, cashew nuts, and pepper, he said, adding that many of these products have become popular in Israel.

According to the diplomat, with the rising position in the global arena, Vietnam hosted the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders’ Meeting in 2017. The country had been selected by the Asia-Pacific Group as the only candidate of the region to run for a non-permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council for the 2020-2021 tenure. To date, Vietnam has received support from many countries around the world for its candidacy.

In the future, Vietnam is committed to promoting comprehensive international integration and establish closer economic links with all main partners, he said.

Regarding relations between Vietnam and Israel, the diplomat said the two sides have witnessed significant strides in cooperation in various fields such as defence, security, trade, agriculture, science and technology.

Both countries have conducted high-level delegation exchanges, including the visits to Vietnam by Israeli President Reuven Rivlin in 2017 and President Shimon Peres in 2011.

Regarding economic cooperation, Israel has become one of the leading economic partners of Vietnam in the Middle East with the trade value surpassing 1 billion USD in 2017.

The ambassador believed that the bilateral trade and investment relations will develop more rapidly in the coming years since the two sides are pushing ahead with negotiations on a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA).

Vietnam is among countries sending the largest number of students majoring in agriculture to Israel, Hai said, adding that the bilateral cooperation in tourism is expanding with Vietnam being one of the most attractive destinations for Israeli tourists.

As a start-up nation with extraordinary accomplishments in technology and innovation, Israel could be an ideal partner of Vietnam in promoting hi-tech industries, building start-up ecosystem, and training high-skilled workers and experts, he noted.

Israeli Minister for Regional Cooperation Tzachi Hanegbi congratulated Vietnam’s National Day and the 25th anniversary of the establishment of Vietnam-Israel diplomatic ties.

He expressed his belief that the bilateral relations will continue thriving in the coming time.-VNA