Vietnamese Ambassador to Chile Pham Truong Giang on May 2 paid a courtesy call to newly-appointed Chilean Foreign Minister Antonia Urrejola Noguera. (Photo: VNA)

Both sides shared delight at the progress in the relationship between the two countries over the years.

Despite impacts of Covid-19, two-way trade hit 1.59 billion USD in 2021, maintaining Viet Nam's postion as Chile’s top partner among ASEAN countries, they noted.

Minister Noguera said she hopes Ambassador Giang will continue making contributions to the promotion of friendship and cooperation between the two countries.

She suggested that the ambassador coordinate closely with relevant agencies to hasten the signing and implementation of memoranda of understanding between Viet Nam and Chile, especially in agricultural cooperation. She asked for Viet Nam's support to Chile to join the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA) and become a member of the UN Human Rights Council in the 2023-2025 tenure.

For his part, Ambassador Giang pledged to continue to work hard to connect ministries, sectors, localities and business communities of Viet Nam and Chile, thus optimising the collaboration potential of both sides. He proposed that Chile share experience with Vietnam in Covid-19 response, climate change and green energy transition.

The diplomat said he hopes the two countries will increase the exchange of delegations at all levels, while strengthening the existing annual dialogue and cooperation mechanisms, including the political consultations between the two Foreign Ministries, consultations between the two trade ministries and the Viet Nam-Chile Free Trade Council.