Secretary of Ho Chi Minh City’s Party Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan on July 18 hosted a reception for out-going French Ambassador to Vietnam Bertrand Lortholary.

Secretary of Ho Chi Minh City’s Party Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan (R)
and French Ambassador to Vietnam Bertrand Lortholary (Source: sggp.org.vn)

During the meeting, the city official hailed the diplomat for his contributions to strengthening the Vietnam-France relations. 

While highlighting France’s contributions to the European Union - Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), Nhan said he believes the deal will help enhance cooperation between the two countries across fields from investment-trade to culture and education. 

For his part, Lortholary said the long-lasting relationship and their common vision on international issues such as multilateralism and free trade, respect for international law would be foundation for the two sides to further tighten their relations. 

According to the diplomat, the number of French people living in Vietnam has been increasing, while the number of French visas granted to Vietnamese citizens surged 65 percent in 2018. 

Lortholary said he hopes the EVFTA will help Vietnamese goods deeply penetrate into France and other European countries and vice versa. 

In their meeting, the two sides also discussed issues related to health, education and culture cooperation.