Vietnam eyes closer multi-faceted relations with Macao
Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said he hoped Vietnam and China's Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) will foster all-round cooperative ties, especially trade and investment ones, to contribute to the further development of Vietnam-China relations.
While meeting with visiting Chief Executive of Macao SAR Edmund Ho Hau Wah on Monday afternoon, Dung said the Vietnam-China relations have developed finely in recent years under the principles of long-term stability, future orientation, good- neighborly friendship and all-round cooperation, and the spirit of good neighbors, good friends, good comrades and good partners.
Dung highly appreciated Ho's visit, saying that it is of importance, helping promote the bilateral ties between Vietnam and Macao in particular and between Vietnam and China in general.
The Vietnamese prime minister proposed the establishment of a working group to practically implement cooperative deals in six fields agreed by Ho and Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem on Monday morning to bring about practical benefits to the people of both sides.
Dung also proposed that the two sides create more favorable conditions for them to exchange delegations more frequently, and their enterprises to seek more investment and cooperation opportunities in the six fields of trade, investment, tourism, labor, education and aviation, especially in entertainment and recreation which are Macao's advantages.
He said Vietnam hoped Macao would help it train manpower relating to the Portuguese and Spanish languages so that Vietnam can further its ties with Portuguese or Spanish-speaking countries.
Dung said Vietnam and Macao have many advantages to promote their win-win cooperative relations. He said he firmly believed that through implementation of deals in the six fields, the two sides will practically develop their cooperative, complementary and win-win relations.
During the meeting, Dung said he was pleased to see great achievements gained by Macao in recent years, especially since it returned to China in 1999. Over the past seven years, Macao's society and economy have been stable and developed comprehensively. This is the achievements of the "one country, two systems" principle, which have brought about practical benefits.
For his part, Ho said Macao and Vietnam have great advantages and can complement each other. Vietnam can offer a new market and big investment space to Macao's enterprises. In addition to trade and investment, the two sides can expand their cooperation to such fields as culture and tourism.
Ho said he hoped the two sides would continue to encourage mutual exchanges and consolidate win-win cooperative relations. Since its return to China, Macao, under the support of the Chinese central government and the "one country, two systems" principle, has seen new development steps with a rapid-growing economy and large labor demand.
Ho said he hoped Vietnam and Macao would strengthen labor cooperation. Besides the six fields, Macao would expand cooperation with Vietnam in all fields in an open manner, he stressed.
Xinhua - October 9, 2006.
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