Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính (right) and Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte at the welcome ceremony for the latter in Hà Nội on Thursday. — VNA/VNS Photo Dương Giang

HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính chaired a welcome ceremony for his visiting Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte in Hà Nội Thursday morning.

This visit, which is taking place when Việt Nam and the Netherlands are celebrating the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations (1973-2023), is the third by the Dutch PM to Việt Nam since he took office in 2010, following PM Chính's visit to the Netherlands nine months ago.

After the welcome ceremony, the two PMs enjoyed a photo exhibition featuring the land and people of Việt Nam and the growing Việt Nam-Netherlands relations before their talks.

Over the past 50 years, the Việt Nam-Netherlands relationship has developed strongly across all fields, especially investment, trade, sustainable agriculture and climate change response.

The two sides established their Strategic Partnership on Climate Change and Water Management in 2010, Strategic Partnership on Agriculture and Food Security in 2014 and Comprehensive Partnership in 2019.

Along with conducting the regular exchange of delegations, especially at high level, the two sides have maintained many bilateral cooperation mechanisms and supported each other at international forums and organisations.

The Netherlands is one of Việt Nam's leading important and time-tested partners. It is currently Việt Nam's biggest investor in the European Union with combined capital of US$13.5 billion in about 400 projects, and the largest importer of Vietnamese products in Europe, with two-way trade surpassing $11 billion. The Netherlands has provided non-refundable aid to many development projects and programmes in Việt Nam.

Vietnamese and Dutch Government leaders reviewed the guards of honours of the Việt Nam People's Army during the welcome ceremony in Hà Nội on Thursday. — VNA/VNS Photo Dương Giang

PM Rutte’s visit aims to seek specific measures to realise outcomes of PM Chính's visit earlier this year, while promoting bilateral cooperation in trade, investment, finance, science and technology, management science, human resources training, tourism, agriculture, logistics, green transition, and digital transformation.

Alongside, Việt Nam and the Netherlands will continue to discuss ways to effectively implement the EU-Việt Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), and further promote the development of the EU-ASEAN strategic partnership for peace, stability, and development of the region and the world. — VNS