National Assembly Vice Chairman Nguyễn Khắc Định holds talks with visiting First Deputy Speaker of Federation Council of Russia's Federal Assembly Andrey Vladimirovich Yatskin. — Photo daibieunhandan.vn

HÀ NỘI — National Assembly (NA) Vice Chairman Nguyễn Khắc Định held talks with visiting First Deputy Speaker of Federation Council of Russia's Federal Assembly Andrey Vladimirovich Yatskin in Hà Nội on Monday.

Welcoming Yatskin and his delegation, Định reaffirmed that the Party, State and NA of Việt Nam attach great importance to consolidating the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with Russia, considering Russia one of the top priorities in the country's foreign policy.

He noted the positive outcomes achieved in bilateral ties across multiple fields in recent years. He expressed his belief that Yatskin’s visit will help generate fresh momentum to deepen overall relations and strengthen cooperation between the legislative bodies, localities, and people of both countries.

Yatskin stressed that Russia highly values the consolidation of cooperation with Việt Nam and highlighted parliamentary collaboration as an important pillar of bilateral relations, strongly supported by Russia’s key leaders.

On this occasion, he conveyed the condolences and sympathies of Federation Council Speaker V. Matvienko to the Vietnamese people and families affected by the recent disasters and flooding in central Việt Nam, expressing confidence that Việt Nam will soon overcome the consequences and restore normal life.

At the talks, the two sides discussed recent developments in cooperation between the two countries and the two parliaments, as well as regional and international issues of mutual concern.

They recognised the steady growth of parliamentary collaboration at multiple levels and across a wide range of fields, from coordination at multilateral parliamentary forums to support cooperation in legislation, economic and trade affairs, science and technology, education and training, energy and oil and gas, culture and tourism, and exchanges between localities and people. Parliamentary support has contributed to the effective implementation of bilateral agreements and opened new, mutually beneficial avenues of cooperation, they noted.

Định and Yatskin agreed that the signing of the cooperation agreement between the Vietnamese NA and the Federation Council in September 2024, together with the development of an activity plan outlining specific themes and tasks through to the end of 2025, has created a robust framework for comprehensive parliamentary cooperation. These documents formed an important political and legal basis for the two sides to carry out cooperation activities in a focused and effective manner, they added.

The current meeting between the Việt Nam–Russia Friendship Parliamentarians’ Group, led by Định, and the Federation Council’s Group for Cooperation with Việt Nam, headed by Yatskin, marked a concrete step in implementing these agreements and provided an opportunity to discuss and propose new initiatives for the next phase of cooperation, including preparations for upcoming high-level parliamentary engagements.

In a friendly and open atmosphere, the two groups reviewed progress in implementing the 2024–25 cooperation plan and exchanged views on new directions for subsequent cooperation phases.

They agreed to work closely to develop a detailed cooperation plan for the activities of the two parliaments and the two friendship groups, thereby helping ministries and agencies of both countries implement their cooperation plans. Both sides acknowledged the positive developments to date and agreed to continue supporting exchanges between localities to strengthen connectivity and expand cooperation based on each side’s potential, strengths, and needs.

Earlier the same day, the Russian delegation paid tribute to President Hồ Chí Minh at his mausoleum, visited his memorial site, toured the Vietnam Military History Museum and the Pushkin Institute in Hà Nội. Before arriving in Hà Nội, the delegation made a working visit to the Mekong Delta city of Cần Thơ. — VNA/VNS