Party General Secretary and State President Tô Lâm and Mayor of Montreuil City Patrice Bessac at the inauguration of a memorial plaque honouring President Hồ Chí Minh in Masquelier Place. — VNA/VNS Photo

PARIS — Party General Secretary and State President Tô Lâm and a high-ranking delegation of Việt Nam laid flowers in tribute to President Hồ Chí Minh at his statue in Montreau Park in Montreuil City, France, on October 6.

After a moment of silence in memory of the late leader, Lâm expressed appreciation for the Montreuil authorities in preserving valuable documents and memorabilia of President Hồ Chí Minh.

He showed his joy at witnessing the flourishing development of the Việt Nam-France Strategic Partnership based on the friendly and traditional relations and mutual trust, stressing that cooperation between Vietnamese and French localities is a distinctive feature of the bilateral relations, contributing to enhancing people-to-people exchanges and cultural interactions between the two countries.

The leader affirmed that Việt Nam always considers France a key European partner, and choosing France for his first visit to Europe in his position as the top Vietnamese leader demonstrates the strong determination of the Vietnamese Party and State to further strengthen multifaceted cooperation with France.

Mayor of Montreuil Patrice Bessac emphasised that Lâm's trip to the city is a strong testament to the friendship between the Vietnamese and the French peoples.

The same day, Lâm and the Vietnamese delegation visited the Hồ Chí Minh space in the Museum of Living History in the French city, during which the top leader said the trip helped the delegation gain a deeper understanding of President Hồ Chí Minh's immense sacrifices on the path to find a way to save his country, and the goodwill and valuable support that Montreuil authorities and French friends have for Việt Nam and the traditional friendship between the two countries.

The space, which was inaugurated on the occasion of the 110th birth anniversary of President Hồ Chí Minh (May 19, 2000), preserves valuable images and artefacts related to the great Vietnamese leader's life and activities while he stayed in France. It is considered to be one of the cultural heritage pieces of Montreuil. — VNS