Deputy Prime Minister Hồ Quốc Dũng meets with First Vice President of the Hellenic Parliament of Greece Ioannis Plakiotakis in Hà Nội on Tuesday. — VNA/VNS Photo Xuân Tùng

HÀ NỘI — Deputy Prime Minister Hồ Quốc Dũng received First Vice President of the Hellenic Parliament of Greece Ioannis Plakiotakis in Hà Nội on Tuesday, stating that Việt Nam wishes to elevate cooperation with Greece to a new level, commensurate with the potential and strengths of both countries.

Hailing the significance of his guest’s official visit, from February 28 to March 5, to the traditional friendship and multifaceted cooperation, the Deputy PM affirmed that Việt Nam always treasures its relationship with Greece.

He called on the Hellenic Parliament to play a greater role in promoting the ratification and supervising the implementation of the two countries’ agreements in the fields of economy, tourism, and culture, among others.

He agreed on the need to strengthen relations in maritime transport, seaports, logistics, shipbuilding, renewable energy, agriculture, and tourism while considering the opening of direct air routes to create favourable conditions for the countries’ business communities to cooperate in the long term.

Thanking Greece for being one of the first EU member states to ratify the EU–Việt Nam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), Dũng suggested Greece continue to support and encourage the remaining EU members to complete the ratification soon.

He also called on the country to persuade the European Commission (EC) to acknowledge Việt Nam's efforts in combating illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, and to soon lift the IUU fishing 'yellow card' on Vietnamese seafood exports.

On this occasion, the Deputy PM informed his guest about the success of the 14th National Congress of the Communist Party of Việt Nam, the country's recent achievements in all aspects, as well as its development goals for the next phase.

For his part, Plakiotakis highly valued Việt Nam's socio-economic development attainments and its increasingly active role in the international arena.

Việt Nam is an important partner of Greece in Southeast Asia, he affirmed, expressing confidence that his visit will help promote substantive and effective cooperation with Việt Nam in areas matching the two sides’ needs and complementary strengths.

At the meeting, both host and guest shared the view that bilateral cooperation is thriving, especially the stable growth in trade that reached US$580 million in 2025.

They perceived that there is still much room for cooperation, and that the two countries should increase mutual visits at all levels and on all channels to enhance political trust, seek opportunities, and foster partnerships in all fields.

The First Vice President of the Hellenic Parliament affirmed Greece's hope for the EU to soon lift the IUU fishing 'yellow card' for Việt Nam.

Amidst a volatile global situation, the two officials exchanged views on regional and international issues of mutual concern.

They noted both Việt Nam and Greece share the common values of peace and advocate the rule of international law, agreeing to reinforce coordination and mutual support at multilateral forums. They also underlined support for the peaceful resolution of disputes, including those in the East Sea (internationally known as the South China Sea), based on international law, thereby contributing to peace, stability, and sustainable development in the region and the world. — VNA/VNS