According to the announcement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan led the Vietnamese delegation to visit and work in Italy, attend the Global Women's Summit and conduct a number of bilateral activities in Germany from June 29 to July 4.
Speaking to VNA before the visit, Vietnamese Ambassador to Italy Duong Hai Hung emphasized that the Vietnam - Italy relationship has a deep historical foundation and a strong tradition of friendship. Italy is one of the first Western countries to establish diplomatic relations with Vietnam since 2016.
In 2013, Vietnam and Italy established a strategic partnership, opening a new phase, strongly developing bilateral relations in all fields.
In terms of politics, the two countries have high levels of trust, regularly exchanging high-level delegations, and consolidating and increasing strategic cohesion between the two countries.
In terms of economy, two-way trade exchanges in 2024 will reach 6.9 billion USD with positive growth momentum, promoting the effectiveness of the EVFTA Agreement; increasingly substantial defense and security cooperation; dynamic local cooperation with many expanded activities in 2023, 2024 in regions and regions of Italy and the opening of the Hanoi - Milan direct flight route from July 1, establishing a closer relationship between the cities of the two countries.
Vietnam is invited to attend many conferences within the framework of the Group of Developed Industrial Countries (G7) under the presidency of Italy.
Ambassador Duong Hai Hung assessed that the potential for cooperation between Vietnam and Italy is very large. The two countries can continue to promote cooperation in traditional fields such as economy, trade, defense, security, education, training, science, technology to new fields such as green transformation, circular economy, renewable energy, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, aviation, space, etc.
The two countries shared views on many important international issues, promoting multilateralism, supporting international order based on law, cooperation for peace, stability and sustainable development. This is an important common point, creating conditions for Vietnam and Italy to strengthen effective coordination at multilateral forums such as the United Nations, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the Asian Parliamentary Forum (ASEP), as well as cooperation mechanisms between ASEAN and the EU.
To bring bilateral relations to new heights, Ambassador Duong Hai Hung said that the two countries need to focus on 5 strategic orientations.
First, increase delegation exchanges at all levels, especially at high levels. The visit and working session of Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan this time is very important, contributing to promoting and deepening the strategic partnership between the two countries, continuing to strengthen and deepen strategic trust, while creating strong policy momentum to promote cooperation in practice.
Second, identify the focus and prioritize economic, trade and investment cooperation. Italy is Vietnam's third largest trading partner in the EU, while Vietnam is Italy's largest partner in ASEAN. The opening of representative offices in Vietnam by Italy's two leading financial institutions, SACE and Simest, shows the strong interest and trust of the Italian business community in the Vietnamese market.
Vietnam encourages Italian enterprises to invest in key areas such as high technology, green infrastructure, digital transformation, etc.
Third, defense and security cooperation. Fourth, promote cultural, educational, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. Fifth, developing local cooperative relations.
