Vietnamese, Belarusian Top Legislators Pledge to Boost Trade Ties

Vietnamese, Belarusian Top Legislators Pledge to Boost Trade Ties

Vietnam and Belarus will further promote their bilateral relations, particularly on economics, trade and investment, said Vietnamese Chairman of National Assembly Nguyen Van An and Chairman of the Belarusian National Assembly Council Gennady Novitsky on May 17 in Hanoi.

The two countries’ economic and commercial ties remain low compared to their potential although the bilateral political relationship has developed well, agreed An and the guest, who is on his official visit to Vietnam from May 16.

Vietnam and Belarus posted a bilateral trade value of just US$31 million in 2003 and the figure slightly increased to nearly US$40 million last year.

The two top leaders pledged that the two legislatures would continue supporting cooperation agreements between the two governments to effectively carry out these pacts in the coming time. They also discussed measures to consolidate and strengthen ties between the two legislative bodies.

After the talks, Chairman An and his counterpart Novitsky signed the minutes of the meeting and a memorandum of understanding on bilateral cooperation. They witnessed the signing of a document on twinning Da Nang City of Vietnam and Grodno City of Belarus.

Also, the Belarusian delegation attended a plenary session of the Vietnamese National Assembly in Hanoi on the same day. They paid a floral tribute to the late President Ho Chi Minh at his mausoleum and visited his former residence and office.

Chairman Novitsky paid a courtesy visit to President Tran Duc Luong and met Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in the afternoon of May 17.

Vietnam and Belarus set up diplomatic relations in February 1992 just a few months after the eastern European nation declared independence on December 27, 1991.

The two countries have enjoyed fine development in bilateral relations in recent years as reflected in regular exchanges of high-ranking officials.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukasenko visited Vietnam in April 1997 and was followed by Prime Minister Sergei Sidorsky in November 2004.

Meanwhile, Belarus has welcomed all four top officials from Vietnam. President Tran Duc Luong visited Belarus in August 1998, Prime Minister Phan Van Khai in September 2000, Party General Secretary Nong Duc Manh in October 2002 and National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Van An in January 2003.

The two countries held an inter-governmental meeting in October 2003 to discuss broader cooperation in economics and trade, focusing on industry, agriculture and petrochemistry.

Vietnam mainly exports to Belarus rubber latex, rice, seafood and cashew nuts in exchange for fertilizer, trucks, tractors and car parts.

The two countries are looking towards closer relations in health care, energy, scientific and technical research, education and training.

• The People, Liberated Saigon