PM Phạm Minh Chính and Chinese Premier Li Qiang witness the signing of a cooperation agreement between Vietnam's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and China's Ministry of Natural Resources. — VNA/VNS
HANOI: Vietnam and China have great opportunities to promote cooperation along the economic corridor of four Vietnamese localities and Yunnan Province, China.
Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang, chairman of the Vietnam-China Bilateral Cooperation Steering Committee, made that statement at the corridor’s 10th cooperation conference held in Hanoi on Monday.
The conference attracted more than 200 delegates, including representatives of the Consulate General of Vietnam in Yunnan’s Kunming City, the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry and Planning and Investment Ministry, the Chinese Embassy in Vietnam, authorities of the Vietnamese localities and many businesses.
A number of cooperation agreements among those localities’ authorities and enterprises were signed at the event.
At the opening speech of the conference, Tran Sy Thanh, chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee, said this was an important political and economic foreign affairs event to celebrate the 15th anniversary of establishing the Vietnam-China Comprehensive Strategic Cooperative Partnership.
The conference also contributed to promoting cooperative development and mutual benefit between provinces and cities along the economic corridor, Thanh said.
At the conference, the deputy Prime Minister said that cooperation between Vietnamese localities and Yunnan province had contributed to promoting the development of supply and production chains, strengthening the connection of infrastructure, and traffic and logistics networks; and enhancing cultural, educational and tourism cooperation.
Besides highly appreciating the determination of Yunnan province’s cooperation with Vietnamese localities, especially in the fields of economics, trade, investment and tourism, the deputy Prime Minister affirmed that Vietnam’s central-run authorities and localities had many policies to create favourable conditions for localities in the North.
In the future, there still are many challenges, so Quang suggested that along with focusing on promoting the efficiency of existing cooperation mechanisms, Vietnam and China needed to jointly research to develop new cooperation models that are suitable to the potentials, advantages, conditions and development priorities of the localities of the two sides, making breakthroughs in economic, trade and investment cooperation.
The two countries needed to speed up the connection of transport infrastructure, especially roads and railways in border areas; and expand cultural and tourism cooperation, Quang said.
Chinese ambassador to Vietnam Xiong Bo said at the conference that the two countries would coordinate closely further to take advantage of the economic corridor cooperation for having comprehensive cooperation in all fields among the five localities.
To promote cooperation between Vietnam and China, and among localities of the economic corridor in particular, deputy minister of Planning and Investment Tran Quoc Phuong said that it was necessary to promote upgrading and connecting transport infrastructure between the two countries.
He said this upgrading was crucial especially infrastructure in border areas and border gates, to facilitate trade, tourism and travel of people of the two countries.
The two sides needed to create more favourable conditions for trade activities, especially agricultural, forestry and fishery products, said Phuong.
They also needed to promote digitalisation in the customs clearance process at the border gates of the two countries.
These localities should research and expand the scope of cooperation in the direction of connecting with major economic centres of the two countries, according to Phuong.
Localities along the economic corridor should enhance the organisation of investment, trade and tourism promotion programmes to support the two countries’ enterprises in studying business and investment policies of Vietnam and China.
According to permanent deputy minister of Foreign Affairs, Nguyen Minh Vu, the economic corridor of Kunming – Lao Cai – Hanoi – Hai Phong – Quang Ninh belongs to the cooperation framework “Two corridors, One economic belt” and is an inter-regional and transnational cooperation mechanism, aiming to effectively exploit the potential and advantages of localities along the economic corridor.
According to Vietnamese consul general in Kunming, Yunnan (China) Hoang Minh Son said this economic corridor is the shortest route connecting China with Asean countries through Hai Phong seaport. — Viet Nam News/ANN
