National Assembly Chairman Vương Đình Huệ meets with Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida in Bangkok on December 8. — VNA/VNS Photo

BANGKOK -— National Assembly (NA) Chairman Vương Đình Huệ had a meeting with Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida in Bangkok on December 8 as part of his ongoing visit to Thailand.

The top legislator conveyed Vietnamese senior leaders’ regards to the Thai King and Queen, and briefed the host on the outcomes of his talks and meetings with President of the National Assembly and the Speaker of the House of Representatives and President of the Senate of Thailand, and the Thai Prime Minister.

Huệ expressed his belief that under the reign of the King, the Thai parliament, Government and people would continue to reap greater achievements in national construction and development, enhancing the country's role in the region and the world.

He affirmed that Việt Nam always attached great importance to fostering the enhanced strategic partnership with Thailand, and hoped that the two countries would soon elevate their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership in the coming time.

The King spoke highly of NA Chairman Huệ's visit, and highlighted the close and long-standing relations between Thailand and Việt Nam and the need to continue strengthening bilateral ties.

King Maha Vajiralongkorn expressed his pleasure at the sound development of the Việt Nam-Thailand relations and the signing of a memorandum of understanding on cooperation between Thailand's House of Representatives and Việt Nam's National Assembly.

He recalled his good impression of Việt Nam during his visits in 1992 and 1997 as the Crown Prince of Thailand.

The King agreed with NA Chairman Huệ's proposal that the King, the Royal Family and Government of Thailand continue creating favourable conditions for the Vietnamese community in Thailand to settle down, and supporting the development of Vietnamese culture and language in the country, including President Hồ Chí Minh relic sites, Vietnamese pagodas, Việt Nam Town and Vietnamese study centres.

NA Chairman Huệ highly valued the previous visits to Việt Nam by King Maha Vajiralongkorn as the Crown Prince, as well as trips by members of the Thai Royal Family, which contributed to fostering the friendship and all-round cooperation between the two countries.

The Vietnamese NA leader said he would tour Udon Thani Province and thanked Thailand for supporting the formation of the first Việt Nam Town in Thailand, which is also the first in the world.

On the occasion, NA Chairman Huệ conveyed the invitation from Party General Secretary Nguyễn Phú Trọng and President Võ Văn Thưởng to invite the Thai King to visit Việt Nam at an appropriate time.

National Assembly Chairman Vương Đình Huệ on December 8 also visited the Vietnamese Embassy in Thailand.

Briefing the embassy's staff on the outcomes of his talks and meetings with Thai parliament's leaders, he said that the two sides agreed on many important orientations for the bilateral relations in the future.

NA Chairman Huệ highlighted the growing Việt Nam-Thailand relationship with bright prospects.

Currently, Thailand was Việt Nam's second biggest trading partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), he said, noting that the two sides were striving for $25 billion in bilateral trade in a more balanced direction. This was also a task of the embassy and especially the Vietnamese Trade Office, he stated.

He lauded the efforts by Ambassador Phan Chí Thành as well as the embassy's staff in preparing for his visit.

He asked the embassy, together with other relevant agencies, to continue working hard to prepare for the elevation of the Việt Nam-Thailand ties in the future.

At the same time, the embassy should promote the similarities between the two nations to further bolster partnership between the two countries as well as cooperation in the Mekong sub-region, the NA leader said. — VNA/VNS