Delegates from both sides at the meeting. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam has always considered Brazil as a major and important partner in South America, with bilateral trade reaching US$7.11 billion in 2023, Vietnamese Ambassador to Brazil Bùi Văn Nghị has said.

During a meeting with Wilson Miranda Lima, Governor of the northern state of Amazonas, Ambassador Nghị emphasised that Việt Nam was one of Brazil's significant trade partners and the two countries had ample room to enhance exchanges in various fields.

They included politics, diplomacy, trade and investment, science and technology, innovation, agriculture and agricultural processing, climate change mitigation, tourism and people-to-people exchanges.

The Vietnamese ambassador expressed his hope that the two countries would continue to support each other's socio-economic development and closely coordinate at international organisations and multilateral forums.

Governor Lima highlighted that the state of Amazonas and the countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) share many climatic similarities, and he said that Amazonas would facilitate businesses interested in cooperation in this region.

In a working session with the Vietnamese ambassador, General Director of the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) Everton Rabelo Cordeiro praised the high quality of rubber trees grown in Việt Nam and suggested this valuable genetic resource to be preserved.

He also introduced the economic value of the Amazonian peach palm, which has high productivity and can thrive in barren lands.

Ambassador Nghị agreed that this plant is well suited to the climate, soil and needs of Việt Nam, and he looked forward to cooperating with Brazil in cultivating this crop.

During discussions with the Fiocruz Research Agency, a prominent centre for biological science research and development in Brazil, Ambassador Nghị proposed exchanges between Fiocruz and the National Institute of Malariology, Parasitology, and Entomology, the Vietnam-Russia Tropical Center, and the Institute of Tropical Biology in the research of vaccines for malaria, dengue fever and other tropical diseases.

The ambassador’s visit to Amazonas was part of the diplomatic activities of the ASEAN Committee in Brazil.

Amazonas is Brazil's largest state, located in the north of the country and covered by the Amazon rainforest, with an extremely diverse ecosystem. — VNS