Workshop looks back on 50 years of Vietnam-Netherlands ties

Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang and delegates (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a workshop on 50 years of relations between Vietnam and the Netherlands, and their achievements and prospects, in Hanoi on December 15, as part of activities marking the 50th founding anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties this year.

In her opening speech, Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang affirmed that the Vietnam-Netherlands relationship is typical of dynamic, effective and practical cooperation.

The two countries have become priority and important partners of each other through the establishment of a comprehensive partnership in 2019, with political trust increasingly consolidated. The Netherlands has become Vietnam's second largest trade partner in Europe and the biggest EU investor in Vietnam, she said.

According to the diplomat, the two countries established a strategic partnership on climate change response and water management in 2010, and a strategic partnership on sustainable agriculture and food security in 2014. They have rolled out specific and practical projects in the Mekong Delta. The bilateral relationship has expanded to national defence-security, transport and sci-tech, both at the central and local levels.

Dutch Ambassador to Vietnam Kees van Baar, for his part, expressed his wish to join with Vietnam in seizing opportunities of the next five decades, towards deepening collaboration in various fields, especially people-to-people exchange and sustainable development.

About orientations to future cooperation, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang said the two countries need to continue maintaining a solid political foundation through meetings at all levels and channels to facilitate cooperation in other areas.

Economy, trade and investment should remain an important pillar in the bilateral ties, she suggested, adding that both nations should take advantage of significant opportunities brought by legal frameworks such as the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA).

As they are seeing new opportunities and driving forces of cooperation in the circular economy and green growth, the diplomat proposed fully tapping Vietnam’s advantages and potential, with the support of the Netherlands, in institutional building, technology transfer and workforce training, towards sustainable development./.