Foreign minister Bùi Thanh Sơn welcomes Panama counterpart Érika Mouynes in Hà Nội on Tuesday. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The foreign ministers of Việt Nam and Panama expressed their wish to promote bilateral cooperation in fields that have much potential during their talks held in Hà Nội on Tuesday.

Panama foreign minister Érika Mouynes is here on a two-day official visit to Việt Nam at the invitation of her Vietnamese counterpart Bùi Thanh Sơn. 

Potential sectors include sea transport, climate change adaptation and renewable energy.

They also discussed measures to enhance cooperation in other fields, including politics, diplomacy, economy, trade and agriculture as well as cooperation at international forums.

The two ministers agreed on the viewpoints to settle international disputes by peaceful solutions on the basis of international law.

At the talks, minister Sơn applauded Mouynes' first visit to Việt Nam as Panama's foreign minister.

They noted that the relations between Việt Nam and Panama had been continuously strengthened and developed, particularly via the implementation of cooperation mechanisms. 

They agreed to continue effectively promoting political consultancy mechanisms at foreign minister level as well as virtual and in-person meetings between the two countries amid the context of the COVID-19.

Achievements in economic cooperation between the two countries demonstrated that they have much potential in trade and investment cooperation. Panama is always among the top ten countries that Việt Nam has the biggest trade exchange with in Latin America. Two-way trade turnover increased from US$250 million in 2014 to over $467 million in 2021. 

Minister Sơn appreciated that the agreement signed on mutual visa exemption for regular passport holders of the two countries in 2019, creating conditions to further boost cooperation in economy, trade, investment, tourism, culture and people-to-people exchanges.

He suggested Panama support Vietnamese nationals living and studying in Panama and effectively coordinate to turn Panama into a transit point for Vietnamese products to enter Latin America and Việt Nam to become a transit point for products of Panama to export to Southeast Asia.

Minister Sơn stressed that Việt Nam always attached and wished to enhance the traditional friendship and multi-facet cooperation more effectively and practically with Panama.

Minister Mouynes affirmed that the Government of Panama wanted to strengthen the relations with Việt Nam in its policy for the Asia-Pacific region.

During the visit, Panama minister Mouynes also met Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính and was scheduled to hold a working session with Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyễn Hồng Diên. —VNS