Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan held talks with Chairman of the Chinese National People’s Congress (NPC) Li Zhanshu in Beijing on July 11.

NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan (L) and NPC Chairman Li Zhanshu at the talks
(Photo: VNA) 

The talks took place following an official welcome ceremony for the Vietnamese top legislator, who is making an official visit to China from July 8-12 at the invitation of the NPC head.        

Chairman Li Zhanshu affirmed that Chinese Party and State leaders attach importance to the visit of the Vietnamese NA Chairwoman, who is the highest-ranking leader of Vietnam to pay an official visit to China following the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC). 

Chairwoman Ngan reiterated that the Vietnamese Party and State always treasure the preservation, inheritance and development of the traditional Vietnam-China friendship, which has been fostered by Presidents Ho Chi Minh and Mao Zedong along with many generations of leaders of both countries. 

She stressed that the maintenance of meetings and contact between high-ranking leaders of the two countries is very important in order to enhance political trust, and timely instruct the settlement of outstanding or arising problems, thus helping bilateral ties develop in a stable and sustainable manner on the basis of agreements reached by leaders of both sides. 

Towards this goal, the Vietnamese NA leader asked Chinese leaders to coordinate with Vietnam in directing relevant agencies and localities of both sides to organize activities marking the 70th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic relations (January 18, 1950-2020), thus further deepening the good ties between the two Parties, States and peoples.

For his part, the NPC Chairman appreciated the healthy development trend in bilateral ties, noting that after the 19th National Congress of the CPC, Party General Secretaryy and President Xi Jinping had chosen Vietnam for his first visit to a foreign country. During the visit, Xi held in-depth discussion with General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong on China-Vietnam ties. The two leaders had reached common perception on many issues and instructed boosting the traditional friendship and the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries.   

The two legislative leaders agreed to the need to promote bilateral cooperation towards bringing happiness to their people and demonstrate the superiority of the socialist regime. They said the two countries should make full use of available cooperative mechanisms to enrich the content of the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.             

Regarding economic ties, the Vietnamese NA Chairwoman underlined good growth in bilateral trade and investment partnership, with two-way trade value reaching 106.3 billion USD in 2018. China continued to be the largest trade and tourism partner of Vietnam, while Vietnam kept its position as the largest ASEAN trade partner of China. In the first five months of 2019, China became the top foreign investor in Vietnam. 

Ngan affirmed that Vietnam will create favourable conditions for foreign investors, including China, to carry out investment projects using advanced and environmentally-friendly technologies in Vietnam, especially in the fields of process, clean energy and hi-tech agriculture. 

She urged China to facilitate the entry of Vietnamese farm produce into China through favourable quarantine and customs, sharing of information on import-export policies, and trade promotion activities.                       

The NPC Chairman said the two sides should push ahead with the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding on connectivity between the “two corridors, one belt” and the “belt and road” initiatives, while building plans, defining priorities and launching negotiations between the two Governments on a five-year plan on infrastructure development and economic zones in border areas to promote investment and trade. 

He affirmed that China will encourage its businesses to invest more in Vietnam, and asked Vietnam to facilitate Chinese investment in hi-tech and agriculture. 

Li noted that China wants to cooperate with Vietnam in building railways connecting Vietnam, China and Europe, thus facilitating the transport of Vietnamese goods to Europe. 

He added that China pays attention to trading in farm produce with Vietnam, and invited Vietnamese firms to participate in the second international import expo in China.         

Regarding the sea issues, the two sides pledged to continue following the shared perception of high-ranking leaders of both Parties and States and the Vietnam-China agreement on basic principles guiding the settlement of sea-related issues; pursue the settlement of sea-related issues by peaceful measures in accordance with international law. 

The two sides agreed to increase the exchange of measures to maintain stability at sea, well implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and work for the early signing of a Code of Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (COC) for maintaining peace, stability in the region.             

The two legislative leaders took note of positive developments in the land border between the two countries. The Vietnamese side proposed that the law-making bodies of both countries enhance supervision and instruct ministries, sectors and localities to adhere to the three legal documents signed between Vietnam and China on land border and strengthen coordination in border management, thus building a peaceful border of friendship, cooperation and development.               

The two legislative leaders also shared experience in Party building and anti-corruption work.      
Chairwoman Ngan underlined the good cooperation between the two law-making bodies in the recent past, and suggested that the two sides continue to exchange visits between their high-ranking leaders, committees, friendship parliamentary groups, and legislators, as well as between local people’s councils. 

The two sides agreed to increase the exchange of working experience in perfecting the Party’s leadership over the State and building a socialist law-governed State. They pledged to coordinate in supervising the implementation of signed agreements, while strengthening coordination and mutual support at inter-parliamentary forums in the region and the world.

The NPC Chairman congratulated Vietnam for its election as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council and its Chair of the ASEAN in 2020. He affirmed that China will work closely with Vietnam to contribute to peace and stability in the region and the world. 

The Vietnamese NA Chairwoman invited Li to visit Vietnam, and the NPC Chairman accepted the invitation with pleasure.