National Assembly Chairman Vương Đình Huệ and President of the National Assembly of Bulgaria Rosen Zhelyazkov at the press conference on September 25 following their official talks. — VNA/VNS Photo Doãn Tấn

SOFIA — National Assembly Chairman Vương Đình Huệ and his Bulgarian counterpart Rosen Zhelyazkov met the press on September 25 (local time) to announce the outcomes of their successful talks in Sofia.

Chairman Huệ said the two leaders extensively discussed orientations and measures to consolidate friendship and improve the efficiency of their cooperation via the Party, Government, National Assembly, people-to-people exchange channels.

They agreed to step up collaboration in economy, trade, investment, culture, sci-tech, education and training, labour and people-to-people exchanges, business-to-business and locality-to-locality cooperation.

Huệ hailed and thanked the Bulgarian legislature for its recent approval of the EU-Việt Nam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) with an absolute majority of votes, just ahead of his visit.

Along with promoting the effectiveness of the European Union-Việt Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), he said the prompt ratification of EVIPA by the parliaments of EU member states will undoubtedly elevate the economic, trade, and investment ties between Việt Nam and the EU as a whole, as well as between Việt Nam and EU member states to a new level commensurate with the potential and aspirations of both sides.

Following the talks, the two sides signed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation between the two legislatures, another MoU between the Office of Vietnamese NA and the Secretariat of the NA of Bulgaria, and other cooperation agreements in the fields of culture, education, tourism, and locality-to-locality exchange.

Hue believed that his visit will be a great success, contributing not only to fostering the relationship between the two legislatures but also lifting the Việt Nam-Bulgaria ties to a greater height.

The two leaders agreed that Việt Nam will continue helping Bulgaria access the ASEAN market, while Bulgaria, with its strategic location on the Black Sea, will assist Việt Nam in further penetrating the EU and the markets of Balkan countries.

Zhelyazkov, for his part, expressed his desire that the two nations will make the most of advantages that the EVIPA brings.

He said both sides expressed special interest in establishing joint ventures to promote bilateral cooperation, tapping into potential for maritime and port collaboration, tourism and culture, and discussed the roles of Bulgaria in Eastern Europe and Việt Nam in ASEAN.

The talks made positive contributions to Việt Nam-Bulgaria ties, with numerous potential cooperation areas that could elevate bilateral ties to new heights, driven by mutual trust, stronger people-to-people exchanges, and better efficiency of trade and investment, he said. — VNS