Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh held phone talks with the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani, on March 9 evening.
During the call, PM Chinh conveyed greetings from Party General Secretary To Lam and other Vietnamese leaders to the Emir and leaders of Qatar. Expressing his deep concern over the current conflict in the Middle East, he shared his sympathy for the difficulties and challenges facing the people in the region.
The Vietnamese PM highly appreciated Qatar's mediation efforts to peacefully resolve conflicts in the Middle East and hoped that Qatar and all relevant parties would exercise restraint and avoid escalating tensions.
Emphasising Vietnam's opposition to the use of force against sovereign states, especially against civilian infrastructure that results in numerous casualties, PM Chinh called for a peaceful solution to the region based on respect for international law, the United Nations Charter, and ensuring the legitimate rights of all parties. He affirmed Vietnam's readiness to participate in the joint efforts of the international community, including the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), to find a peaceful solution to the current conflict.
In the context of the complex conflict situation, PM Chinh thanked and requested the Government of Qatar to continue paying attention to and ensuring security and safety of Vietnamese citizens in Qatar and to facilitate the transit of Vietnamese citizens through Qatar.
PM Sheikh Mohammed affirmed that Qatar would protect security and safety of Vietnamese citizens "as it would protect Qatari citizens."
Regarding energy cooperation between the two countries in the current context, he affirmed that Qatar is striving to fully implement its commitments and contracts with partners, and is ready to cooperate closely to contribute to ensuring energy stability in Vietnam.
PM Sheikh Mohammed also emphasised that Qatar highly values its relationship with Vietnam and wants to promote cooperation in all fields.
The two leaders agreed to promote the implementation of many measures to enhance the effectiveness of cooperation between the two countries, especially in the areas of investment, trade, energy transition, financial investment in the International Financial Centre in Vietnam, promoting negotiations on a free trade agreement between the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Vietnam, digital transformation, and the development of the Halal sector./.
