Local residents pose with peach blossoms at the traditional flower market in Hàng Lược Street, Hà Nội. VNA/VNS Photo Nhật Anh

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam is on track for economic recovery and sustained impressive growth compared to other nations, Argentinian Ambassador to Việt Nam Luis Pablo Maria Beltramino declared while speaking with Vietnam News Agency.

He said the Vietnamese Government’s measures and policies directed at development were admirable and deserved to be studied and applied.

On the Việt Nam-Argentina relations, Beltramino said a series of activities were on schedule to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the diplomatic ties (1973–2023).

According to the ambassador, the logo for the event will be used for all of the embassy's diplomatic notes starting January this year, while a plan is in place to invite Argentinian artists to perform in Hà Nội and HCM City.

He added that exhibitions and cultural programmes would be held in the countries’ national libraries and a host of trade promotion activities.

Argentinian Ambassador to Vietnam Luis Pablo Maria Beltramino. VNA/VNS Photo

​The sides would step up delegation exchanges at all levels, he said, suggesting the establishment of the Việt Nam–Argentina and Argentina–Việt Nam friendship associations.

The ambassador said since diplomatic ties were established, there had been a stable increase in trade between the two, particularly in the past 12 years following the upgrade of their relations to a comprehensive partnership in 2010.

Bilateral trade grew from US$875 million in 2011 to $4.5 billion in 2021. In the first 11 months of 2022, the figure was $4.52 billion, up 6.9 per cent annually. Currently, Argentina is the third biggest trade partner of Việt Nam in Latin America, while Việt Nam is the largest trade partner of Argentina in Southeast Asia and sixth globally.

Beltramino forecasted bilateral trade to increase further and professed his wish to foster relations with Việt Nam.

Venezuelan Ambassador hails Việt Nam's incredible recovery

Venezuelan Ambassador to Việt Nam Tatiana Pugh Moreno has said she is impressed with Việt Nam's incredible post-pandemic recovery, saying that it is thanks to the strengths brought about by the socialist-oriented market economy.

In an interview with Vietnam News Agency on the New Year, Moreno said Việt Nam’s recovery was evidenced by the impressive economic growth of 8 per cent last year.

She wishes to learn from Việt Nam’s experience in the renewal process, saying that Venezuela was seeking economic restructuring solutions and Việt Nam should share its experience in this field.

Việt Nam’s organisation and development of the economy, as well as the involvement of all economic sectors, were outstanding examples for the world, she said.

Venezuelan Ambassador to Vietnam Tatiana Pugh Moreno. VNA/VNS Photo

Moreno said Việt Nam’s voice in the international arena carried much weight as the country won its seat at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) for the 2023-2025 tenure in October 2022. This would help a responsible country like Việt Nam prove its stature by following principles of solidarity and respecting nations' right to self-determination.

According to Moreno, the fact that Việt Nam has a legitimate voice in the UNHRC as one of the responsible members of the international community, especially at present, is significant, as the world is experiencing challenging times. Aware of that, the Vietnamese Party and State raised a voice, which was welcomed by the international community.

The diplomat said 2022 had marked a special time when Việt Nam and Venezuela resumed the exchange of high-level visits, including visits made by Vice Foreign Minister for Asia, the Middle East and Oceania Capaya Rodriguez and Vice Foreign Minister for North America Carlos Ron.

She said that at a photo exhibition held at the Venezuelan Embassy on the occasion of the 33rd anniversary of Việt Nam-Venezuela diplomatic ties, there were several photos depicting a meeting between Commander Hugo Chávez and General Võ Nguyên Giáp. It was an important meeting between historical figures that motivated the two countries to journey together in the times ahead.

She revealed that the two nations would continue pushing cooperation in various areas like oil, gas, and energy. The fourth meeting of the Việt Nam-Venezuela Joint Committee, due to be held in Caracas this year, offered an important opportunity for them to review bilateral coordination and work out measures to elevate bilateral ties further.

As Venezuela is one of the world’s major energy suppliers amid the global energy crisis, the ambassador said Venezuela was ready to help Việt Nam in this field, as committed by the late President Hugo Chávez.

On the occasion of the Lunar New Year festival, Moreno, on behalf of President Nicolás Maduro and the people of Venezuela, conveyed her best wishes to the Vietnamese.

She expressed her delight at enjoying Tết festivities in Hà Nội and Việt Nam, an occasion to gear toward family values and make plans for the new year.

It is also an occasion to taste bánh chưng (glutinous rice cake), and decorate the embassy and private home to ring in the new year.

Bright prospects for Việt Nam-Morocco trade ties

Ambassador of Morocco Jamale Chouaibi. VNA/VNS Photo

With its business experience in Africa, Morocco will create conditions for Vietnamese firms to access the Moroccan market and others in the region safely, Ambassador of Morocco Jamale Chouaibi said.  

Chouaibi stressed that the similarities shared by the two countries would help promote their cooperation and coordination in the future.

He continued that the two countries shared geo-political similarities, explaining that Morocco is seen as a gateway to Africa and Europe while Việt Nam is a gateway to Southeast Asia.

The ambassador added that both were newly emerging, dynamic economies with stable growth and had been stepping up the policies of diversifying trade partners and human resources.

The biggest investor in West Africa and the second largest in Africa, Morocco has a substantial presence in the continent in important spheres such as insurance, banking, energy and telecommunications.

Despite the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, Việt Nam was also among the countries with the fastest growth in Asia and the world at large, he said, noting the Southeast Asian country's 8 per cent growth in 2022, higher than the set target, which international financial organisations lauded.

Việt Nam had also seen marked increases in foreign direct investment (FDI) and trade surplus, the diplomat said.

He suggested the two countries join tripartite or quadripartite projects in Africa, particularly in agriculture, with the participation of international donors.

Chouaibi held that consolidating the bilateral relations was the common wish of the two countries to promote and foster South-South cooperation.

In its strategy, Việt Nam was focusing on expanding and diversifying the network of economic partners, apart from traditional ones in South Africa, he said, noting that East Africa and West Africa would be the next targets of the strategy.

Both countries have displayed their strong political will to consolidate and expand the bilateral ties, as reflected through the increasing number of signed agreements covering various fields, from trade and investment to energy-mining, banking, education-training and aviation, along with many memoranda of understanding.

According to the diplomat, such documents have helped promote the decentralised cooperation model, which is being rolled out between cities, ports and universities.  

He said the active development of the relations had also been reflected through the growing trade. Việt Nam is Morocco's second most important partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Morocco’s appointment as an honorary consul in HCM City on December 7, 2021, had created a new momentum, generating more trade and business opportunities between the two countries, the ambassador said.

He emphasised that establishing a 'twin' relationship between Casablanca, Morocco's industrial and financial centre, and HCM City, Việt Nam's southern metropolis, in the future would create a new impulse for the Việt Nam-Morocco relations.

The ambitious plans outlined by the two countries in renewable energy, digital transformation, tourism, agriculture, infrastructure and logistics, industry and technology to become leading emerging economies in the regions would be the opportunities for them to share experience through inter-sectoral committees, he continued.

On the occasion of Việt Nam’s Lunar New Year festival, Chouaibi expressed his hope that the New Year will bring hopes and aspirations for successes and victories, giving new momentum to Vietnamese people on the path of pursuing happiness and prosperity. VNS