Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and Kuwaiti Oil Minister Mustafa Al-Shamali

Vietnam always considers Kuwait one of the country’s important economic partners and wishes to further push the relationship, especially in the field of oil and gas.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung made the statement at a meeting with visiting Kuwaiti Oil Minister Mustafa Al-Shamali in Hanoi on October 22.

He applauded the minister’s visit during which he will attend the ground-breaking ceremony of the Nghi Son refinery and petrochemical complex in the central province of Thanh Hoa, slated for October 23.

The PM used the occasion to thank the Kuwaiti State for its support to flood victims in Vietnam’s central region as well as its assistance to help Vietnam access loans for rural infrastructure projects through the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development.

The leader expressed his hope that Kuwait will help Vietnam in personnel training for the oil and gas sector and consider the reception of Vietnamese guest workers.

He spoke highly of the Kuwaiti Government’s role in the implementation of the Nghi Son refinery and petrochemical project, especially the country’s commitments to providing lifelong crude oil for the complex.

PM Dung suggested the Kuwaiti Government continues instructing and assisting the Kuwait Limited Liability Company, one of the project’s investors, to ensure the project’s progress, contributing to each country’s development and the friendship between the two nations.

For his part, Mustafa Al-Shamali said Vietnam and Kuwait still hold a lot of potential for cooperation, voicing his hope for further links in energy, industry and oil and gas.

The minister pledged the creation of favourable conditions for Vietnamese businesses to invest in Kuwait and affirmed his readiness to back Vietnam in human resources development for the oil and gas sector.

The Kuwaiti State has decided to send 3 million USD in support for victims of tropical storm Nari in the central region of Vietnam, he said.

VNA