On the afternoon of September 6, after the official welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Palace, General Secretary and President To Lam held talks with President of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau Umaro Sissoco Embaló.
At the talks, General Secretary and President To Lam warmly welcomed President Umaro Sissoco Embaló on his official visit to Vietnam, the first head-of-state delegation exchange between the two countries since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1973.
The General Secretary and President expressed his belief that following the recent delegation exchanges, cooperation and mutual support between the two countries, this visit by President Umaro Sissoco Embaló will be a great success, contributing to creating new momentum for the good traditional friendship and cooperation between the two countries.
On this occasion, General Secretary and President To Lam thanked Guinea-Bissau for sending a delegation to Vietnam to attend the funeral and express condolences on the passing of the late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, an outstanding leader of the Vietnamese people, demonstrating the friendship and sincerity between the two countries and peoples and the respect of the State and people of Guinea-Bissau for the late General Secretary.
The General Secretary and President highly appreciated the achievements that the State and people of Guinea-Bissau have made in maintaining political stability, solidarity, national reconciliation and socio-economic development, and Guinea-Bissau's contributions to the common development of the African region.
President Umaro Sissoco Embaló once again expressed his deep condolences on the passing of the late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong; and thanked the General Secretary, President, State and people of Vietnam for the warm and respectful reception given to the delegation.
The President expressed his admiration for Vietnam's revolutionary cause, national construction and development, and shared that this great cause and outstanding leaders such as President Ho Chi Minh and General Vo Nguyen Giap were the inspiration for the national liberation movement in Guinea-Bissau and Africa.
President Umaro Sissoco Embaló said that Guinea-Bissau has named a high school after President Ho Chi Minh; affirming that Vietnam is a model for developing countries in Africa in general and Guinea-Bissau in particular.
The President of Guinea-Bissau affirmed Guinea-Bissau's policy of expanding cooperation with countries in Asia, in which Vietnam is identified as a top priority partner; determined to consolidate and develop the traditional friendly and cooperative relationship with Vietnam, for the benefit of the two countries and two peoples.
In a friendly and open atmosphere, the two leaders informed each other about the situation in each country and expressed satisfaction with the positive results in bilateral relations in the context of Vietnam and Guinea-Bissau celebrating the 50th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations in 2023. On that basis, the two sides discussed and proposed directions to further improve the effectiveness of bilateral cooperation in the coming time.
Politically, the two sides agreed to increase exchanges and contacts at high and all levels to consolidate political trust and create new momentum for bilateral cooperation; effectively implement bilateral cooperation mechanisms, including actively implementing the Memorandum of Understanding on establishing a political and diplomatic consultation mechanism between the two countries' foreign ministries signed during this visit.
To facilitate the promotion of delegation exchanges between the two countries, the President of Guinea-Bissau said that visas will be exempted for holders of diplomatic and official passports of Vietnam. On this occasion, the President of Guinea-Bissau respectfully invited General Secretary and President To Lam to pay an official visit to Guinea-Bissau soon. General Secretary and President To Lam thanked and happily accepted the invitation.
Thanking General Secretary and President To Lam for sharing Vietnam's valuable experience in development and international integration, the President of Guinea-Bissau agreed to closely coordinate to create changes in economic, trade and investment cooperation; continue to exploit the strengths of traditional cashew nuts, while providing preferential policies to promote the diversification of import and export goods, creating conditions for the business communities of the two countries to seek cooperation and business opportunities in each other's markets.
Continuing the momentum of cooperation when Vietnam is the third largest trade partner and accounts for a quarter of Guinea-Bissau's total trade turnover, President Umaro Sissoco Embaló also agreed with the proposal of General Secretary and President To Lam to expand cooperation in areas with great potential in which Vietnam has strengths and Guinea-Bissau has needs such as agriculture, exchanging experiences in policy making, development models, training of management staff, negotiating to soon sign documents to complete the legal framework, creating favorable conditions for promoting bilateral cooperation.
Discussing regional and international issues of mutual concern, the two sides agreed to strengthen close coordination and mutual support at multilateral forums, especially at the United Nations, the Non-Aligned Movement and the G77. The two sides also agreed to promote cooperation between each country in regional organizations of which both countries are members such as ASEAN, the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), especially in priority areas of the organizations such as agriculture, education, health, digital transformation, etc.
Regarding the East Sea issue, the two sides shared a common vision on the importance of ensuring security, safety, freedom of navigation and aviation in the East Sea, emphasizing support for resolving disputes by peaceful means, in accordance with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
After the talks, the two leaders witnessed the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on establishing a political and diplomatic consultation mechanism between the two Ministries of Foreign Affairs and the Memorandum of Understanding on agricultural cooperation between the two Ministries of Agriculture and Rural Development.
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