Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính (right) met with the visiting Slovenian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon on Tuesday. — VNA/VNS Photo Dương Giang

HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính hosted a reception in Hà Nội on Tuesday for Slovenian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon.

PM Chính spoke highly of the results of the talks between the Slovenian official and Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn, and her meeting with Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyễn Hồng Diên, as well as the Việt Nam-Slovenia business in HCM City.

The PM noted his belief that Fajon’s official visit to Việt Nam from May 22-23 would contribute to advancing the traditional friendship and good cooperation between the two countries across spheres.

Việt Nam always attached importance and wished to enhance the multi-faceted cooperation with Slovenia, one of its traditional friends in Central-Eastern Europe, he affirmed.

For her part, Fajon expressed her impression of Việt Nam’s socio-economic achievements, and stressed that Slovenia wanted to foster its cooperation and traditional friendship with Việt Nam, a leading important partner of Slovenia in the region.

PM Chính rejoiced at the positive development of the bilateral ties over the past time, and suggested the two sides increase the exchange of all-level delegations, especially in 2024 when they mark the 30th founding anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic relations.

The host leader emphasised that despite COVID-19 impacts last year, the bilateral economic and trade cooperation still maintained its growth pace, with two-way trade value hitting a record of over US$570 million, up 15 per cent from 2021.

He suggested Slovenia further facilitate the access of Vietnamese products like electronics, garments-textiles, farm produce and aquatic products to the Slovenian and EU markets.

The PM used the occasion to call on Slovenia to soon ratify the EU-Việt Nam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) and urge the European Commission (EC) to soon remove its "yellow card" warning against Vietnamese seafood.

Fajon affirmed that with the good traditional friendship as the foundation, Slovenia wished to deepen its relations with Việt Nam in different spheres, stressing the Slovenian government highly values Việt Nam’s advantages in terms of market, workforce and business environment, as well as the fact that both nations support free trade.

Slovenian firms were interested in and wished for result-oriented cooperation with Việt Nam, as reflected through the big number of Slovenian companies that have come to the Southeast Asian nation on this occasion to seek cooperation, investment opportunities, she said.

The host and guest shared the view that the two countries need to strengthen cooperation at multilateral and regional forums, and work together in response to global challenges like climate change, and energy and food crises.

Regarding the East Sea (known internationally as the South China Sea) issue, they emphasised the importance of ensuring security, safety and freedom of navigation and aviation in the East Sea, and settling disputes by peaceful measures in line with international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

PM Chính also called for Slovenia’s further support for the Vietnamese community in the country, thus contributing to the long-standing friendship between the two nations. — VNS