Vietnam and Belarus should boost economic and trade ties in the coming time, said Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko during his talks with visiting Vietnamese Minister of Police Le Hong Anh August 20, Vietnamese media said Tuesday.
“Vietnam will be a bridge for Belarus to develop relations with Southeast Asian nations and Belarus will help Vietnam to gain a firm foothold in the European market,” said Lukashenko, adding that he will visit Vietnam in the next few months.
At the invitation of State President Nguyen Minh Triet, Alexander Lukashenko already planed to pay an official visit to Vietnam from March 25-27 this year. But the second trip by a Belarusian head of state was then canceled. The first visit to Vietnam by a Belarusian president was made in April 1997.
Two-way trade between Belarus and Vietnam was US$49.3 million in 2006, an on-year increase of 25 per cent. Vietnam exports natural rubber, rice, seafood, tea, cashew nuts to Belarus and imports Kali fertilizer, trucks for mining, tractors and automobile spare parts from the country.
In December 2005, the Vietnam-Belarus Inter-Governmental Commission on Economic, Commercial, Scientific and Technological Cooperation held a meeting in Hanoi to exchange views on expanding cooperation in economy, commerce, industry, energy, agriculture, oil refinery and education and training.
The latest visit to Vietnam by a Belarusian official, Deputy Foreign Minister Viktar Gaisenak, took place in October 2006. Belarusian Prime Minister Sergei Sidorski visited Vietnam in 2004, and Chairman of the Republic Council of the Belarusian parliament G. Noviski went to Vietnam in 2005.
President Tran Duc Luong visited Belarus in 1998; Prime Minister Phan Van Khai did so in 2000; followed by Party General Secretary Nong Duc Manh in 2002 and National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Van An in 2003. (Website of Government, Party)
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