Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn (right) and his Polish counterpart Zbigniew Rau held talks on Thursday in Hà Nội. — VNA/VNS Photo Lâm Khánh

HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn stressed that the official visit by Polish top diplomat Zbigniew Rau will elevate the traditional ties and multifaced cooperation between the two countries to new heights.

He was speaking after talks on Thursday with his Polish counterpart during the latter’s official visit to Việt Nam on March 16-17, his first visit since COVID-19 restrictions were fully lifted.

Minister Sơn thanked the Government and people of Poland for donating nearly 1.4 million doses of vaccine and eight tonnes of medical equipment worth about US$4 million to Việt Nam during the worst of the pandemic.

Polish foreign minister Zbigniew Rau meanwhile was impressed with Việt Nam’s socio-economic development achievements in recent years, highly appreciate the increasingly important role and position of Việt Nam in the region and in the world, and reaffirmed that Poland always attaches importance to and wishes to strengthen relations with Việt Nam, its leading important partner in Southeast Asia.

The two sides noted with pleasure the very positive growth of the traditional friendship over the 70 years through the attentive efforts of Vietnamese and Polish leaders and people, and agreed that there is still much room for further development.

Việt Nam and Poland agreed to strengthen delegation exchanges, closely coordinate and support each other at multilateral and international forums, including the United Nations, Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) and ASEAN-EU.

Poland is currently Việt Nam’s number one trade partner in central eastern Europe and Việt Nam is Poland's fourth largest in Asia.

Two-way trade in 2021 and 2022 hit record high of over $2.5 billion, despite impacts from COVID-19.

Vietnamese foreign minister Sơn suggested the two sides work closely to fully utilise the opportunities made available by the EU-Việt Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).

Minister Sơn said he hoped Poland would facilitate the imports of Vietnamese agricultural and aquatic products and seasonal tropical fruits, allowing them a greater present in the Polish market.

He also wanted Poland to increase investment in the fields that Việt Nam has needs and Poland boasts strengths – including pharmaceuticals, animal husbandry, food processing, manufacturing and processing industry, and mineral exploitation.

Minister Sơn suggested that Poland soon ratify the EU-Việt Nam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), and urge the European Commission to soon remove the illegal, unreported, and unregulated yellow card against Vietnamese seafood products.

Foreign minister Zbigniew Rau said Poland considers Việt Nam as one of markets in Southeast Asia with the most potential, suggested that Việt Nam create more favourable conditions for Polish products such as beef, poultry and blueberries to enter the Vietnamese market; and expressed the wish that the two sides promote cooperation in the fields of information technology, smart city, green technology, and environmental protection.

The two ministers also agreed to promote bilateral cooperation in the fields of education and training, agriculture, natural resources and environment, culture, tourism, monument restoration, health, information technology and media, labour.

Minister Sơn thanked the Polish government for creating favourable conditions for the 25,000-30,000 Vietnamese living stably in Poland.

Foreign minister Zbigniew Rau affirmed that the Vietnamese community is one of the most respected and admired expat communities in Poland for their diligence, hard work, and contribution to the local economy and society.

At the same time, he said he will continue to support the Vietnamese community to promote its role in the most effective way as a bridge to develop the friendship and multifaceted cooperation between the two countries. — VNS

Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn (right) and Polish counterpart Zbigniew Rau (left) on Thursday witnessed the signing ceremony of a cooperation agreement between the Diplomatic Academy of Việt Nam and the Polish Institute of International Affairs, as part of the Polish diplomat's official visit to Việt Nam. — VNA/VNS Photo Lâm Khánh