Vietnamese citizens welcome the former Deputy Prime Minister of Egypt Hussein el-Shafei on the official visit to Việt Nam in August 1973. — VNA/VNS File Photo

CAIRO — The relations between Việt Nam and Egypt have made continuous great strides over the past 60 years, affirmed Vietnamese Ambassador to Egypt Nguyễn Huy Dũng.

In an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries (September 1, 1963-2023), the diplomat said that the bilateral relationship has been built on the foundation of a common desire for national independence and freedom, and reinforced by generations of leaders and people of the two countries.

Over the past six decades, the two sides have regularly exchanged high-level delegations, while coordinating with and supporting each other at regional and international forums such as the United Nations (UN), the Non-Aligned Movement, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the African Union (AU), Ambassador Dũng said.

Egypt is currently the leading trade partner of Việt Nam in North Africa, he noted, underlining that bilateral cooperation in culture and education has also been fruitful, with many Vietnamese students and officials receiving Arabic training in Egypt.

In recent years, senior leaders of the two countries have made mutual visits, during which many cooperation agreements were signed among ministries, sectors and localities of the two sides, he said.

The long-standing sound political relations and warm sentiments towards each other have paved the way for the growth of bilateral ties in the future, while the expanding economic, trade and investment partnership will help facilitate the political-diplomatic relations and people-to-people exchange between the two sides, he affirmed.

The ambassador said cooperation between the two countries will contribute to promoting peace, stability and development in the region, and help to respond to traditional and non-traditional challenges.

In terms of economy, Ambassador Dũng held that Việt Nam and Egypt, as two large markets with over 100 million people each, can supplement each other. With their strategic positions, the two countries can help each other to enter larger markets in their respective regions.

He said that Việt Nam and Egypt signed their first trade deal in 1994, and the first meeting of the Joint Committee was held in 1997. Since then, the two sides have maintained cooperation through the Joint Committee mechanism. The sixth meeting of the committee will be organised in the near future.

Regarding activities to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Việt Nam-Egypt diplomatic relations, the diplomat said that the activities have been held in parallel in both countries with their close coordination, with a ceremony marking the special occasion held in Hanoi on July 22 and a similar event in Cairo on July 26.

A series of activities will also be held until the end of this year, including the introduction of Vietnamese cuisine and the promotion of economic, trade and tourism in Cairo and other Egyptian localities, he said.

In order to further promote the bilateral ties, the ambassador noted that in their recent meetings, leaders of the two countries had affirmed their high political determination to lift up the bilateral relations to a new height in all fields.

Ambassador Dũng said that in the future, the two countries will focus on cooperating in economy, trade, investment, and tourism, optimising their economies' strengths, increasing people-to-people exchange, promoting parliamentary collaboration and partnership among political parties, and sharing development experience. — VNS