On the morning of April 1, after the state-level welcoming ceremony was solemnly held at the Presidential Palace, Politburo member and President Luong Cuong and King of Belgium Philippe met.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at the meeting, President Luong Cuong affirmed that Vietnam always attaches importance to and wishes to strengthen multifaceted cooperation with Belgium, a member country with an important role and voice in the EU; expressed his appreciation for the valuable support of the Belgian people for Vietnam in the past struggle for national independence, as well as the good feelings and contributions of the King and Queen of Belgium personally to the country and people of Vietnam and the relationship between the two countries in recent times.
King Philippe of Belgium expressed his pleasure to visit Vietnam again, after three previous visits as Crown Prince. The King of Belgium affirmed that he attached importance to Vietnam's role and position in the Asia-Pacific region and wished to strengthen cooperation with Vietnam in areas where both sides have strengths and potential.
On this occasion, President Luong Cuong thanked Belgium for approving the Resolution of the Belgian National Assembly on supporting victims of Vietnamese Agent Orange; emphasizing the important significance of this Resolution for Vietnam and suggesting that the two countries actively implement the Resolution in the coming time, contributing to raising international public awareness of the consequences of Agent Orange in Vietnam.
Regarding economy and trade, an important pillar in Vietnam - Belgium relations, the two leaders agreed to continue to effectively implement the Vietnam - EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).
President Luong Cuong suggested that Belgium soon ratify the Vietnam - EU Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), in order to promote equal and mutually beneficial investment relations between businesses of the two countries; suggested that Belgian businesses increase investment in Vietnam, especially in areas where Belgium has strengths such as high technology, renewable energy, digital transformation, and strategic infrastructure.
The President also asked Belgium to speak up so that the European Commission (EC) can soon remove the IUU "yellow card" for Vietnam's seafood exports.
The King of Belgium Philippe hopes that Belgian enterprises in the fields of wastewater treatment, energy, rare mineral exploitation, etc. will participate in investment and business activities in Vietnam.
The two leaders emphasized the importance of implementing the Strategic Partnership framework on agriculture through developing a circular agricultural model, smart agriculture, enhancing technology transfer between research and training agencies on agriculture, forestry and fishery, contributing to Vietnam's efforts in responding to climate change, especially in the Mekong Delta region; agreed to study and develop an agricultural cooperation program between Vietnam and regions of Belgium.
The two sides agreed to promote cooperation in important areas such as agriculture, education - training, culture - tourism, national defense - security, science and technology, local cooperation, and at the same time expand to other potential areas such as green technology, artificial intelligence, innovation, high technology, promoting the startup ecosystem, training high-quality human resources, especially in the semiconductor industry.
After the meeting, the two leaders witnessed the handover ceremony of cooperation documents in the fields of culture, trade, climate change, and support for victims of Agent Orange.
