General Secretary and President To Lam. Photo: Hoang Ha
This is the first foreign trip of General Secretary and President To Lam after being elected General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam. The visit is a continuation of the very successful visit to Vietnam in 2023 by General Secretary and President Xi Jinping. The visit demonstrates the high regard that General Secretary and President To Lam attaches to the development of relations between the two parties and countries and also demonstrates the priorities in the diplomatic and foreign policies of each country. The Chinese side hopes and expects that the visit will continue to inherit the China-Vietnam friendship, consolidate political trust, promote the building of a China-Vietnam Community of Shared Future of strategic significance, and make positive contributions to peace, stability and development in the region and the world. Vietnam is summarizing 40 years of implementing the renovation process and building and drafting documents for the 14th National Party Congress. Therefore, in my opinion, the visit is also an opportunity for the two sides to exchange experiences in party building and national governance. Late last year, General Secretary and President Xi Jinping paid a historic visit to Vietnam, and the two sides issued a Declaration on the establishment of a Vietnam-China Community of Shared Future of strategic significance. According to the Ambassador, what remarkable results have been achieved so far from the realization of the common perception between the top leaders of the two Parties? The state visit to Vietnam by General Secretary and President Xi Jinping was a great success. We once again thank the late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, as well as the Party, State and people of Vietnam for their warm and friendly welcome to General Secretary and President Xi Jinping.
General Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping and his wife during their visit to Vietnam in December 2023. Photo: Nhat Bac
China and Vietnam are making joint efforts to implement the high-level consensus and the Joint Statement of the two countries. The promotion of the building of the China-Vietnam Community of Shared Future, which has strategic significance, has had a very good start. Regarding political relations, exchanges and interactions between high-ranking leaders of the two parties and countries have always been closely maintained. The late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, through flexible forms, had close strategic exchanges with General Secretary and President Xi Jinping during his lifetime. Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visited China for the second time to attend the World Economic Forum. The Head of the Central Propaganda Department, the Head of the Central External Relations Department, the Minister of Planning and Investment, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam also had very successful visits to China. On the Chinese side, the Head of the Central Propaganda Department, the Deputy Chairman of the National People's Congress, and the Minister of Justice also visited and worked in Vietnam. The Secretaries of Guangxi and Yunnan provinces met with the Secretaries of four Vietnamese provinces that share a border with China. In terms of national defense and security, the cooperation between the two countries has become more substantial and has achieved positive progress. Last April, the two countries' armies successfully held the 8th border defense friendship exchange. New Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun had a very effective meeting with Vietnamese Defense Minister Phan Van Giang.
Vietnamese students welcome the two defense ministers of Vietnam and China during the Vietnam-China border defense exchange in April.
The two countries have established a hotline between the Vietnam Navy and the Southern Theater Command (People's Liberation Army of China). In addition, there have been visits by military ships and exchanges of officers from the two countries... In terms of economy and trade, the development momentum continues. In the first 7 months of this year, according to statistics from China, bilateral trade turnover reached 145 billion USD, up 21% over the same period. As far as I know, statistics from Vietnam are even higher. In the first 7 months of the year, Vietnam exported 2.1 billion USD worth of fruits and vegetables to China. Of which, durian exports reached 1.22 billion USD, up 46% over the same period last year, accounting for 92.4% of the total export volume of durian from Vietnam to foreign countries. The two countries are speeding up the completion of procedures to export frozen durian and fresh coconut from Vietnam to China. Regarding investment, in early August, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (China) Lee Ka-chiu visited Vietnam. Hong Kong's (China) investment turnover in Vietnam in the first 7 months reached 2.19 billion USD, ranking second. China also invested 1.64 billion USD, ranking fourth; in terms of the number of new investment projects in Vietnam, China still ranked first. Regarding tourism, in the first 7 months of the year, more than 2.1 million Chinese tourists came to Vietnam, ranking second among countries with foreign visitors to Vietnam. It can be said that the two countries have made efforts to jointly implement the 2023 Joint Statement on the direction of "6 more" cooperation, promoting all fields and achieving positive results.
The first international transit train from Cao Xa station rolls out to connect with international transit trains exporting to China. Photo left: Huyen Ngo - Vietnamese student presents Chinese calligraphy at the event celebrating International Chinese Language Day at Hanoi University in April 2023. Photo right: Xinhua
2025 marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and China. Could you please tell us what the two sides need to do to promote the building of a community sharing the strategic future of Vietnam and China? What opportunities and challenges will Vietnam-China relations face in the coming time, Ambassador? This year marks the 100th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh's arrival in Guangzhou (China) for revolutionary activities. At that time, President Ho Chi Minh and Chinese leaders such as Mao Zedong and Liu Shaoqi established a very warm relationship. During the meeting with Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (China) Lee Ka-chao, General Secretary and President To Lam affirmed that Hong Kong (China) is a place closely associated with and marking many important events in the history of the Vietnamese revolution and the revolutionary activities of President Ho Chi Minh. 2025 marks the 95th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and China. Reviewing history to see clearly the close relationship between Vietnam and China as both comrades and brothers, vividly demonstrating the relationship between the two parties and the two countries. In my opinion, the two countries need to continue to persistently implement the strategic orientations set forth by the leaders of the two parties; persevere in the political guidance of the two parties for the relationship between the two countries; support each other in following the socialist path in accordance with the situation of each country; promote and deepen the Comprehensive Strategic Cooperative Partnership, and build a Vietnam-China Community of Shared Future of strategic significance. In the coming time, I believe that in cooperation, there will still be more opportunities than challenges. The 2023 Joint Statement has set out the direction of "6 more", including better control and resolution of disagreements. It is necessary to adhere to common perceptions and persistently engage in dialogue to control and resolve disagreements, so as not to affect the relationship and sentiments of the two peoples. The Ambassador has met twice with General Secretary and President To Lam. During the discussions, what impressed the Ambassador most about General Secretary and President To Lam? This year, I was honored to meet twice with General Secretary and President To Lam at the Presidential Palace. General Secretary and President To Lam attaches great importance to developing the Vietnam-China relationship. The opinions of General Secretary and President To Lam left a deep impression on me, including three important opinions. First, General Secretary and President To Lam emphasized that Vietnam's revolutionary process is closely related to China's revolutionary process. In the history of the struggle for national independence and liberation, the two countries have stood side by side, fought together, and forged a warm friendship. Second, General Secretary and President To Lam emphasized that we must firmly follow the path chosen by the previous generation of leaders; must persevere and be steadfast in the common orientation and perception that the late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and General Secretary and President Xi Jinping achieved; and firmly promote the building of a China-Vietnam Community of Shared Future of strategic significance. Third, this is what impressed me most when General Secretary and President To Lam emphasized that the international situation is evolving more deeply and complicatedly than ever. China and Vietnam need to strengthen solidarity and cooperation to respond to challenges and join hands to realize common strategic goals. In my opinion, the phrase "common strategic goals" means that the two sides need to support each other in realizing the two 100-year goals that the two parties and two countries have identified.Vietnamnet.vn
Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/trung-quoc-mong-doi-chuyen-tham-cua-tong-bi-thu-chu-tich-nuoc-to-lam-2312194.html
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