Vietnamese PM, Philippine President meet on ASEAN Summit sidelines

Labuan Bajo (VNA) – Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met with Philippine President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr. on the sidelines of the ongoing 42nd ASEAN Summit in Labuan Bajo, Indonesia, on May 10.

At the meeting, PM Chinh expressed his pleasure to see the development of the Vietnam - Philippines strategic partnership, affirming his wish to further deepen the relationship to bring practical benefits to the people of the two countries and contribute to peace, security, and stability in the region.

The Philippine President said that the meeting is an opportunity to strengthen cooperation between the two countries. Regarding his recent meeting with Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong in the UK, he affirmed that the bilateral relationship has a good foundation. He said he is looking forward to visiting Vietnam soon this year to discuss with Vietnamese leaders the directions for further developing the ties.

The two sides agreed to promote the exchange of delegations at all levels, experience sharing between the ruling parties, and people-to-people exchange. The two leaders affirmed their determination to soon bring two-way trade turnover to 10 billion USD through measures to facilitate the opening of markets for each other's key exports, including agricultural products, food, and rice. They also agreed to deepen cooperation in fields where the two countries boast potential and strengths such as agriculture, industry, high technology, tourism, marine economic development, education and training, and climate change response.

Prime Minister Chinh affirmed that Vietnam is ready to supply rice in a strategic, long-term and stable manner at appropriate prices to the Philippines, thereby helping the country ensure food security.

Appreciating Vietnam's goodwill, President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr. affirmed that Vietnam is an important partner of the Philippines. He hopes the two sides will promote the role of private enterprises in economic and investment cooperation.

Discussing regional and international issues, the two leaders agreed to strengthen coordination and consultation, contributing to strengthening the solidarity and the central role of ASEAN.

Sharing common concerns about challenges in the East Sea, the two sides affirmed to uphold the principle of peaceful settlement of disputes in line with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), contributing to maintaining peace, stability, security and safety of navigation and overflight.

On this occasion, Prime Minister Chinh conveyed the invitations of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and President Vo Van Thuong to Philippine President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr. to visit Vietnam this year./.