Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (right) and French President  Emmanuel Macron

Welcoming Pham’s visit to France, President Macron said he highly values Viet Nam’s position and role in the region and expects to further deepen the strategic partnership with the Southeast Asian country.

Macron thanked the Government and people of Viet Nam for gifting medical masks to France in 2020, and informed France will donate additional 1,370,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine, bringing total vaccine donations to Viet Nam to more than 2 million doses.

PM Pham thanked President Macron for his hospitality accorded to him and his entourage, and expressed appreciation for the Government and people of France for vaccine and medical supply donations to Viet Nam.

Both the host and the guest noted with pleasure effective cooperation across fields like politics-diplomacy, economy, security-defense, culture, education, and local-to-local ties between the two countries.

They agreed to further consolidate trade and investment cooperation; work together to build long-term industrial partnership in such areas like high and digital technology, clean energy, and organic agriculture; accelerate progress of the projects on transport, infrastructure, agriculture, environment, energy, and aerospace.

As both countries are set to celebrate the 50^th founding anniversary of diplomatic ties and the 10^th founding anniversary of strategic partnership in 2023, Pham and Macron agreed to build annual plans with concrete tasks to further strengthen the strategic partnership.

On regional and international issues of shared concerns, President Macron affirmed France appreciates ASEAN centrality, underscores the importance of maintaining security, safety and freedom of navigation and aviation, support the settlement of disputes through peaceful means on the basis of international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

The leaders agreed to effectively tap opportunities brought by the EU-Viet Nam free trade agreement while beefing up the ratification process of the EU-Viet Nam investment protection agreement to add momentum to bilateral trade and investment ties between Viet Nam and France and between Viet Nam and the EU.

PM Pham spokes highly of France’s role and position within the European Union as well as the international arena. He welcomed the role played by countries, including France in promoting peace, stability and common prosperity in the region.

Pham also appreciated France’s collaboration with Viet Nam at multilateral forums, particularly when Viet Nam assumes the role as non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council.

PM Pham and President Macron agreed to issue a joint statement on deepening the Viet Nam-France strategic partnership on the occasion of the former’s official visit to France.

Pham took the occasion to convey the invitations of Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and President Nguyen Xuan Phuc to President Macron to visit Viet Nam./.