On February 27, at the Government Headquarters, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh received Portuguese Minister of State and Minister of Foreign Affairs Paulo Rangel.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Prime Minister welcomed the visit to Vietnam by Minister Paulo Rangel, emphasizing that the visit is of great significance, contributing to concretizing the commitments of the senior leaders of the two countries, and opening up new, more substantive and effective cooperation orientations in the coming time.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized that the predestined bond between the two peoples has formed more than 500 years ago and Portugal's decision to open an Embassy in Vietnam is a historical milestone, affirming the determination to strengthen bilateral relations, creating a favorable foundation to promote cooperation in all fields.
On the basis of the good relationship between the two countries and the great potential for cooperation, the Prime Minister proposed that the two sides continue to consolidate political trust, strengthen delegation exchanges at all levels, especially at the high level; elevate the relationship between the two countries towards substance, effectiveness, and in accordance with the new context.
Emphasizing that the two economies are highly complementary, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh proposed to maximize the advantages of each side to promote economic, trade and investment cooperation to become an important pillar of bilateral relations; the two sides should soon study and move towards establishing cooperation mechanisms between the two countries to create conditions to promote long-term and stable cooperation opportunities.
Regarding priority areas, the Prime Minister proposed to promote cooperation in renewable energy on the basis of "risk sharing, benefit harmony", ensuring efficiency and sustainability; encourage Portuguese businesses to participate in offshore wind power, solar power and energy infrastructure projects in Vietnam.
In addition, the Prime Minister emphasized the great potential in marine economic development, and proposed that the two sides strengthen cooperation in maritime, seaports, shipbuilding, logistics... in accordance with each country's marine development strategy.
The Prime Minister also requested the two sides to continue to closely coordinate and effectively utilize free trade agreements between Vietnam and the EU; support and promote the remaining EU member states to soon ratify the Vietnam - EU Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA); strengthen exchange and share experiences in digital transformation, innovation, health, sports, education - training, especially teaching Portuguese.
Based on the tourism potential, the Prime Minister proposed to create favorable conditions for travel between the two sides through visa exemption for citizens of the two countries.
Minister Paulo Rangel affirmed that Portugal considers Vietnam one of the important partners in Southeast Asia and wishes to further deepen the multifaceted cooperation relationship with Vietnam.
The Minister highly agreed with the Prime Minister's major orientations, saying that Portugal is ready to coordinate to promote high-level delegation exchanges, strengthen business connections to soon achieve the target of trade exchange of 1 billion USD as agreed by senior leaders of the two countries, and soon implement a cooperation mechanism between the two countries.
The Minister highly appreciated the potential for cooperation in the field of renewable energy and marine economy, affirming that Portuguese businesses have experience, technology and desire to participate in projects in Vietnam.
