Vietnamese president's Brunei visit reenergizes bilateral cooperation
HANOI - President Tran Duc Luong's official visit to Brunei will
reenergize bilateral friendship and multi-form cooperation, particularly in the economic domain,
between Vietnam and Brunei.
The Vietnamese leader began a three-day visit to Brunei, the first in his capacity as President of
Vietnam at the invitation of Brunei's Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah. President Luong's visit marks the
second leg of his Southeast Asia tour, which also includes Indonesia and the Philippines.
Vietnam and Brunei established diplomatic ties in 1992. Since then, the two countries have
exchanged high-level visits, including a visit to Brunei by then Deputy Prime Minister Tran Duc Luong
and a visit to Vietnam by Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah in 1998 when he attended the sixth summit of
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Hanoi.
The two countries has signed an aviation cooperation agreement, which led to the presence of
Vietnamese flag carriers in Brunei in 1999. An accord on the establishment of the Vietnam-Brunei
Joint Committee has also been reached.
Two-way trade between the two countries was registered at US$2 million last year with Vietnam's
exports accounting for the majority of that amount. At present, about 20 Vietnamese companies
have been conducting market research in Brunei, exploring the potential for agriculture, aquaculture
and animal raising as ways of increasing Vietnam's exports to Brunei.
Bernama (Malaysia) - November 12, 2001.
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