Chairman of the Việt Nam National Assembly Vương Đình Huệ meets Party General Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping in 2023. — VNA/VNS Photo

BEIJING — The coming official visit to China by National Assembly (NA) Chairman Vương Đình Huệ is crucial to maintaining high-level exchanges, upholding the strategic orientations for bilateral relations, and realising the common perceptions shared by the top leaders of the two Parties and countries, said Vietnamese Ambassador to China Phạm Sao Mai.

The visit from April 7 to 12, to be made at the invitation of the Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China (NPC) Zhao Leji, will be the first trip to China by Huệ as the top legislator of Việt Nam.

It will also be the first in-person meeting between the leaders of the legislative bodies since the 13th National Congress of the Communist Party of Việt Nam and the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.

The trip follows a state visit to Việt Nam by Party General Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping in December 2023 during which the two sides issued a joint statement on continuing to deepen and elevate the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership and build a Việt Nam - China community with a shared future that carries strategic significance, Mai told the media.

Stressing the importance of this visit, he said it affirms that Việt Nam considers relations with China as the top priority and a strategic choice in its foreign policy.

The visit also aims to carry out the six major cooperation orientations of the two countries, especially promoting higher political trust and consolidating a more solid social foundation for bilateral relations, thereby helping elevate the Việt Nam - China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership for the sake of the two peoples as well as for peace, stability, cooperation, and development in the region and the world.

As the relations between the Vietnamese NA and the Chinese NPC have been unceasingly reinforced and developing, the visit will help intensify and boost the effectiveness of cooperation between the countries’ legislative bodies while affirming the critical importance of parliamentary diplomacy to the development of Việt Nam, he went on.

Talking about bilateral ties over the recent past, the ambassador noted thanks to common efforts, relations between the two Parties and the two countries have continued growing well and obtaining many important achievements in all spheres.

Mai highlighted increased exchanges at all levels, and continuously deepened economic, trade, and investment links that have become a bright spot in the two countries' relationship, along with tangible results in other fields like culture, education, tourism, and people-to-people interaction, helping strengthen the social foundation for relations.

In addition, Việt Nam and China have harvested numerous accomplishments in the building of a land border of peace, friendship, and cooperation, contributing to socio-economic development in border localities.

They have made efforts to sustain discussion and control sea-related differences in conformity with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

The two sides have also actively carried out the negotiation mechanisms on sea-related issues, stepped up the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), and strived to build a substantive, efficient, and effective code of conduct (COC) in the waters to help ensure peace and stability in the East Sea and the region, according to the diplomat.

He expressed his hope that through Chairman Huệ’s visit, relations between the two Parties, countries, and parliaments will continue developing to help produce tangible outcomes and new contents of the Việt Nam - China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

Sharing of legislative experiences will be also increased while the social foundation consolidated and mutual understanding between the two peoples fostered. — VNS