Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly delivers a speech at the ceremony hosted by the Vietnamese Embassy in Ottawa to mark the fifth anniversary of the Vietnam-Canada Comprehensive Partnership on October 3. (Photo: VNA)

Delivering a speech at a ceremony hosted by the Vietnamese Embassy in Ottawa to mark the fifth anniversary of the Vietnam – Canada Comprehensive Partnership, Ambassador to Canada Pham Cao Phong said official visits, online and offline meetings, and phone talks between the two governments’ leaders and minsters have provided a strong foundation for the two countries to further expand bilateral ties and reinforce common priorities.

He said the Vietnam – Canada economic linkage, as a driver of the Comprehensive Partnership, should be further stepped up by making the most of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for the Trans-Pacific Progress (CPTTP).

The diplomat urged the two sides to push for a sustainable and reliable supply chain and advance cooperation in science, technology, innovation, green energy, climate change and environment, saying these areas will help the two nations sustain economic security.

The event gathers Vietnamese and Canadian officials and diplomats. (Photo: VNA)

Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly, for her part, said Canada wishes to forge a long-term relation with Vietnam, and that the Southeast Asian country plays a critical role in Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, given that they boast a close people-to-people exchange and both are members of the Francophone community.

Canada looks forward to Vietnam’s support to become an ASEAN strategic partner, she noted, adding that last year, ASEAN was Canada’s fourth largest trade partner with bilateral goods exchange reaching 25 billion USD.

Vietnam and Canada established a Comprehensive Partnership in 2017 during an official visit of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to Vietnam. Since then, the two-way trade has surged by 72.7% and the number of Vietnamese students in Canada has been on a rise.

Canada has invested 1.2 billion CAD (0.8 billion USD) in 101 projects in Vietnam within their development cooperation.

The two countries will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations next year.