State President Lương Cường met with mayor of Peru's capital Lima Rafael Lopez Aliaga. VNA/VNS Photo

LIMA – State President Lương Cường met with mayor of Peru's capital Lima Rafael Lopez Aliaga on November 14, as part of his official visit to the country.

The Lima official affirmed that the people of the city, like all Peruvians, highly value the friendship and cooperative ties with Việt Nam, pledged his readiness to further strengthen bilateral cooperation, and voiced his hope for an early establishment of a sisterly relationship between Lima and a Vietnamese locality.

Cường suggested Lima, as Peru’s capital, play a leading role in promoting the two countries’ multifaceted cooperation. He also requested that the mayor support Việt Nam’s Viettel Military Industry and Telecoms Group (Viettel) in expanding its Bitel project in Peru and participating in Lima’s digital transformation and smart city projects.

The Peruvian mayor expressed his full support for Viettel’s investment in Peru, particularly its efforts to extend coverage to remote areas.

Underscoring the capital’s ambition to develop as a smart city, he said he looks forward to future opportunities for knowledge-sharing between both sides in this area and shared his wish to learn from Việt Nam’s expertise, seeking support in carrying out projects to build systems of social welfare and credit-providing e-wallet for low-income residents in Lima.

On this occasion, the municipal administration awarded Cường the token key to the city in recognition of his role in fostering a robust, sustainable partnership between the two countries.

Speaking at a ceremonial event following the private meeting, Lopez Aliaga emphasised that the presentation of the key symbolises President Lương Cường’s new status as a close friend of Lima and Peru.

Cường expressed his gratitude for the honour, describing it as both a privilege and a responsibility to further deepen the positive and practical ties between the two countries. VNS