Standing Vice Chairman of the Vietnamese National Assembly Trần Thanh Mẫn (left) had talks with President of the Assembly of Portugal Augusto Santos Silva in Lisbon on November 14. — VNA/VNS Photo Hương Giang

LISBON — Portugal always treasures bilateral ties and cooperation with Việt Nam at multilateral forums, President of the Assembly of Portugal Augusto Santos Silva told visiting Standing Vice Chairman of the Vietnamese National Assembly Trần Thanh Mẫn during their meeting in Lisbon on November 14 (local time).

Việt Nam plays an important role in Portugal’s external policy, especially in the field of economy, he said, adding that Việt Nam can help Portugal expand its relations with Asian countries.

Portugal, despite its small population, is a gateway to the world thanks to its location in the meeting point of Europe, Africa and Latin America, said Silva.

He suggested that Việt Nam and Portugal can strengthen people-to-people exchange with a priority of opening diplomatic representative offices in each other countries.

Silva affirmed that Portugal will conduct a general election in March 2024, but whatever the result is, it will not affect the country’s relations with Việt Nam in multilateral forums.

He thanked Việt Nam for supporting the popularisation of Portuguese by establishing the Camões Portuguese language centre at Hà Nội University in 2016.

Mẫn affirmed that Việt Nam always values the relationship with the European Union (EU) and its members, including Portugal. He expressed his delight that the two countries have maintained regular delegation exchanges and meetings at multilateral forums.

The Vietnamese NA Vice Chairman hailed Portugal’s plan to open its diplomatic representative office in Việt Nam, pledging to create optimal conditions for and support this plan, which is expected to help foster bilateral ties and the exchange of information in many areas in the future.

He said that Việt Nam also plans to launch its embassy in Portugal, asking for Portugal’s assistance in the work.

Mẫn proposed that the two sides coordinate closely to optimise opportunities brought about by the EU-Việt Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) to complete the target of US$1 billion in two-way trade.

He also asked for Portugal’s support in persuading other EU members to ratify the EU-Việt Nam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) soon.

Mẫn suggested that Portugal hasten the European Commission to remove the “yellow card” warning against Vietnamese seafood export taking into account Việt Nam's determination and efforts in fully and seriously implementing the EC's recommendations on sustainable fisheries development.

He proposed that Portugal continue creating favourable conditions for the Vietnamese community to settle down and integrate into the host society.

The two legislatures should increase delegation exchanges and consider the formation of friendship parliamentarians’ groups with each other to promote their partnership, while strengthening coordination and mutual support at regional and global inter-parliamentary forums, Mẫn suggested.

Standing Vice Chairman of the Vietnamese National Assembly Trần Thanh Mẫn and Vietnamese delegation with former President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Duarte Pacheco in Lisbon. — VNA/VNS Photo Hương Giang

Earlier the same day, NA Standing Vice Chairman Mẫn had a meeting with former President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Duarte Pacheco.

Congratulating Pacheco on his successful performance in the IPU leader role, Mẫn spoke highly of the important contributions that Pacheco has made to the IPU over the years. He expressed his belief that as a member of the Portuguese Parliament, Pacheco will continue to contribute to promoting external relations of the union.

For his part, Pacheco recalled his good memories during his trips to Việt Nam and showed his impression at the success of the 9th Global Conference for Young Parliamentarians in Hà Nội in September.

He underlined the high cooperation potential between the two countries, suggesting that they should send more business delegations to each other country to explore partnership opportunities.

He pledged that he always supports and will discuss with the new IPU President if Việt Nam wishes to host the World Conference of Speakers of Parliament.

Also on November 14, NA Standing Vice Chairman Mẫn had a meeting with Filipe Leite de Sousa, a representative from the Vovinam Federation in Portugal (WFVV), during which Mẫn lauded the federation’s activities to popularise the Vietnamese traditional martial arts. Filipe Leite de Sousa vowed to continue to work hard for stronger friendship and cooperation between Portugal and Việt Nam. — VNS