National Assembly Chairman Vương Đình Huệ welcomes the President of the National Council of Switzerland Martin Candinas to Hà Nội on Wednesday. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — National Assembly Chairman Vương Đình Huệ and President of the National Council of Switzerland Martin Candinas on Wednesday agreed to strengthen cooperation between the two nations and two legislative bodies at bilateral and multilateral forums.

Huệ hosted a welcome ceremony and held talks for the Swiss guest in Hà Nội on Wednesday morning.

Martin Candinas said Switzerland was one of the first Western European countries to establish diplomatic relations with Việt Nam. The Việt Nam-Switzerland relationship has flourished not only in bilateral cooperation but also in multilateral collaboration.

He expressed a positive impression regarding Việt Nam’s vigorous socio-economic growth in recent decades, noting that his visit this time, which will last until June 30, will help the Swiss delegation learn about Việt Nam’s development more deeply.

NA Chairman Huệ informed the guest of Việt Nam’s socio-economic growth achievements, including millennium goals, sustainable development goals, and deep international integration.

Việt Nam has made efforts to realise two 100-year goals: By 2030 which falls on the 100th founding anniversary of the Party, Việt Nam looks to become a developing country with a modern industrial base and middle-income population; and by 2045, which falls on the 100th anniversary of the country's establishment, Việt Nam will be a developed and high-income country, he said.

This is also the economic basis for Việt Nam's commitments at the COP26 Conference on achieving zero emissions by 2050, he said.

No matter what the circumstances, Việt Nam always steadfastly implements the foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, friendship, cooperation and development, as well as diversification, multi-lateralisation, being a good friend, a reliable partner, and an active and responsible member of the international community, he said.

“Việt Nam always attaches importance to the traditional friendship and cooperation with Switzerland, and is proud that the two countries have maintained diplomatic relations for more than half a century,” he said.

The NA Chairman thanked Switzerland for always accompanying, supporting and helping Việt Nam in the past time. In particular, during the 1991-2021 period, Switzerland provided US$600 million of Official Development Assistance to Vietnam, focusing on human resource training, urban development, poverty reduction, and rural development.

This was an important resource contributing to Việt Nam's socio-economic development, Huệ said.

During COVID-19, Switzerland and other countries supported Vietnam to quickly control the pandemic, recover the economy and regain growth momentum of more than 8 per cent in 2022.

In the context of complicated international developments, Huệ suggested the two sides strengthen the delegation exchanges at all levels including the Party, State and people-to-people diplomacy channels, while promoting the Party channel relations with other ruling and participating Swiss parties.

Accelerating Việt Nam-EFTA signing

President of the National Council of Switzerland Martin Candinas visits the archives hall of the National Assembly of Việt Nam. —VNA/VNS Photo

Given that the potential for untapped trade and investment cooperation between the two countries is still large, Huệ stated that Việt Nam wishes to further diversify markets and investments, and suggested that the two sides soon narrow differences and quickly conclude negotiations to sign a free trade agreement between Việt Nam and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).

Speaking highly of Switzerland's important role in EFTA, Huệ hoped that Switzerland would encourage other members to soon complete negotiations and sign this agreement.

The NA leader also highly praised Swiss businesses in Việt Nam for creating many jobs and bringing more green technology to the country. He pointed out the commitment of the Vietnamese National Assembly and Government to creating favourable conditions for foreign businesses, including Swiss enterprises to operate in the country long-term.

Martin Candinas affirmed that Switzerland is always interested in and wishes to sign the agreement soon because this will certainly pave the way for two-way economic, trade and investment cooperation.

Martin invited Huệ to pay an official visit to Switzerland in 2024 and hopes that the agreement will be signed, bringing benefits to both sides.

At the talks, the two leaders exchanged words on other issues in science-technology, education, climate change response, as well as just energy transition and digital transformation.

Switzerland will always stand by and be ready to support Việt Nam so that both countries can achieve their sustainable development goals, Martin said.

Switzerland is interested in and always considers Việt Nam as a strategic partner in economic development cooperation in Southeast Asia. Over the past 30 years, Switzerland has developed cooperation programmes and projects in Việt Nam and will continue to strengthen them in the future.

Martin agreed with NA Chairman Huệ's proposal for which Switzerland will continue supporting the stances of Việt Nam and ASEAN in ensuring safety and freedom of navigation in the East Sea on the basis of international law, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982.

He affirmed Switzerland's position that parties must comply with international laws. Switzerland also always calls on the parties involved to have dialogues and come up with peaceful solutions in accordance with the UN Charter.

Legislative collaboration

Huệ hoped the two sides would continue exchanges of high-level delegations and committees, as well as friendship groups of parliamentarians, especially in experience sharing of legislation and consultation.

The two legislative bodies can fully consult, exchange, coordinate and support each other at multilateral parliamentary forums such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the Francophone Parliamentary Assembly (APF).

They agreed to strengthen cooperation between localities of the two countries, including cooperation between local elected bodies.

“The potential for cooperation in all aspects between the two countries and the two legislatures is huge. As friends who have experienced challenges together for more than half a century, in the current international context, Việt Nam and Switzerland must strengthen their mutually-beneficial cooperation,” he told the guest.

Martin Candinas affirmed that he will make every effort to further promote relations between the two countries and the two legislatures bodies on both bilateral and multilateral levels. — VNS