Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has said that the Vietnam-France strategic partnership will facilitate Asia-Europe development, contributing to the cooperation between the two continents through the framework of the Asia-Europe Meeting and the ASEAN-EU dialogue.

Dung made the statement while delivering a speech at the French International Relations Institute in Paris on September 24 during his ongoing official visit to the European country.

According to the PM, the building of strategic trust between partner countries is necessary to more broadly strengthen trust between Asia and Europe. Accordingly, the strategic partnership between Vietnam and France, constructed based on mutual trust and shared cultural and human values, should be brought into full play, contributing to an environment of peace, cooperation and development in both continents.

Through this partnership, the two countries can work together to prevent opportunistic intervention and inequality and stop behaviours to highlight unilateral strength, injustice demands, and imposition and political hegemony-characterised acts that run against international law, the PM said.

He stressed the Vietnam-France strategic partnership reflected the maturity of the multi-sector relations at all levels between the two countries.

It is set to further heighten comprehensive cooperation in the fields of politics-diplomacy, economics, culture, science and technology and defence and security, he said.

Vietnam always attaches great importance to its partnership with France, as it was the first European country to support Vietnam’s renewal process and the beginning of its international integration in the 1990s, the PM declared.

He added that since the establishment of their diplomatic ties 40 years ago, the two countries have signed many mutually beneficial agreements and worked well together at regional, inter-regional and global multilateral forums.

He noted that the two sides have a responsibility to further bolster their bilateral relations in many areas so as to benefit both of their peoples.-VNA