PM meets with leaders of Gulf countries

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met with leaders of Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman on the occasion of his attendance at the ASEAN- Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit held in Saudi Arabia’s capital city of Riyadh on October 20.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (L) and Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani

Meeting Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, PM Chinh affirmed that Vietnam attaches importance to its cooperation with Qatar and considers the country an important partner in the Middle East. He expressed wish to welcome the Emir of Qatar to Vietnam in November to push cooperation in trade, investment and labour.

Vietnam is ready to create favourable conditions for Qatari enterprises and investment funds, particularly the Qatar Investment Authority, to raise their investments in Vietnam through diverse forms, he said.

Emir Hamad al-Thani expressed readiness to remove any barriers to further cultivate Vietnam-Qatar cooperation, especially in areas proposed by PM Chinh.

Both sides agreed to establish joint working groups in potential areas such as digital transformation, renewable energy, infrastructure, and to sign agreements that facilitate the entry of citizens from both countries to step up bilateral ties in the near future.

Talking with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, PM Chinh suggested facilitating the exchange of high-ranking delegations, cultural exchange and tourism. He wished that UAE's investment funds would increase their investments in sectors of Vietnam’s need such as green transition, digital transformation and circular economy.

The UAE President affirmed the priority to elevating comprehensive cooperation with Vietnam to new heights, adding that he will instruct the country's investment funds to actively explore opportunities in Vietnam.     

On the occasion, both sides vowed to expedite negotiations and soon sign the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), beef up collaboration in potential areas such as digital transformation, data centre construction, innovation, sci-tech, and research in food security.

Meeting Deputy Prime Minister of Oman Prince Sayyid Shihab bin Tarik Al Said, the Vietnamese leader suggested that in the coming time, both sides continue facilitating visits at various levels and improve the effectiveness of bilateral cooperation mechanisms such as the Joint Committee and Political Consultation, as well as carry forward cooperation in trade to achieve a significant breakthrough in two-way trade turnover.

Al Said said the Omani Government attaches importance to furthering cooperation with Vietnam, especially in economy and investment.

He consented to create favourable conditions and consider opening up the market for goods of strength while promoting collaboration in the Halal sector and enhancing the efficiency of the Vietnam-Oman Investment Fund (VOI). Both sides also agreed to expand cooperation in education and enhance exchanges between the younger generations./.

VNA