Vietnam to expand cooperation and boost bilateral trade with Sri Lanka

President of Vietnam Nguyen Xuan Phuc received the outgoing ambassadors of Sri Lanka and Cambodia, who came to bid their farewells, in Hanoi on December 28.

Talking to Sri Lankan Ambassador W.G.S Prasanna, President Phuc affirmed that Vietnam always attaches importance to the traditional friendship and multifaceted cooperation with Sri Lanka.

He highly valued the diplomat’s efforts to boost cultural exchanges and partnerships in religious affairs and trade while thanking the South Asian country for supporting Vietnam’s candidacy for membership of the UN Human Rights Council for 2023-2025.

He asked the two countries to work together more closely in fisheries and agriculture, step up existing cooperation mechanisms, strive to raise bilateral trade to USD 500 million, and expand ties in investment, tourism, education training, culture, Buddhist affairs, and people-to-people exchanges.

They should also continue coordinating within the UN and Non-Aligned Movement frameworks, the Vietnamese President noted, calling on Sri Lanka to keep supporting the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)’s common stance on the East Sea issue, maintenance of peace and freedom of navigation and overflight, and compliance with international law and the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Ambassador Prasanna once again thanked Vietnamese authorities for helping save and assist the 300 Sri Lankan nationals on a vessel in distress in the waters off Vung Tau in November 2022.

He underlined his country’s consistent stance on the East Sea issue and support for peace, freedom of navigation and overflight in the East Sea, and peaceful settlement of disputes in line with international law and UNCLOS.

Source:  Vietnam News Agency (VNA)