General Secretary of the Communist Party of Việt Nam Central Committee and State President Tô Lâm meets Secretary General of the International Organisation of La Francophonie Louise Mushikiwabo in Paris on Saturday. — VNA/VNS Photo

PARIS — General Secretary of the Communist Party of Việt Nam Central Committee and State President Tô Lâm had a meeting with Secretary General of the International Organisation of La Francophonie (IOF) Louise Mushikiwabo on October 5 (local time) as part of his trip to France for attendance at the 19th Francophonie Summit and an official visit.

At the event, Lâm said he appreciates the sound relations and cooperation between Việt Nam and the OIF as well as the contributions by the organisation and Mushikiwabo to bolstering the Francophone solidarity and cooperation for peace, stability and development.

Lâm took the occasion to ask for OIF to accelerate tripartite cooperation models to support African countries in agriculture and South-South collaboration, while continuing to step up the implementation of cooperation programmes and projects in education, French language teaching, and scientific research and startup in French.

He also urged the OIF to continue backing ASEAN’s efforts in maintaining peace, security and stability in the region, including the East Sea (internationally known as the South China Sea), and supporting the settlement of disputes via peaceful means on the basis of respecting international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Mushikiwabo, for her part, welcomed Việt Nam’s attendance at the summit, affirming the country is an indispensable factor in the Francophone community and acknowledging its positive contributions to the community’s agencies.

In a constructive, frank and open spirit, the two sides discussed orientations to bolster the cooperation between Việt Nam and the Francophone community, particularly in the areas of economy, trade, investment and cooperation for sustainable tourism.

Lâm invited Mushikiwabo to visit Việt Nam in the coming time. — VNS