National Assembly President Trần Thanh Mẫn meets President of Panama José Raúl Mulino Quintero in Hà Nội on Wednesday. — VNA/VNS Photo Doãn Tấn

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam attaches importance to its traditional friendship and multifaceted cooperation with Panama, regarding it as a key partner in Latin America, said National Assembly President Trần Thanh Mẫn.

He made the statement in Hà Nội on Wednesday while meeting with President of Panama José Raúl Mulino Quintero and a high-ranking Panamanian delegation, who are on a four-day official visit to Việt Nam.

Warmly welcoming President José Raúl Mulino and the high-ranking Panamanian delegation, the top legislator expressed appreciation for the support the Panamanian people gave to the Vietnamese people during their past struggle for national liberation, as well as in the cause of national defence, construction and development today.

President Mulino thanked NA President Mẫn for receiving the delegation, affirming that the Panamanian people remember and are grateful to Việt Nam for being the first country to sign the Protocol to the Treaty Concerning the Permanent Neutrality and Operation of the Panama Canal in 1979.

Panama places great importance on its good relations of friendship and cooperation with Việt Nam and wishes to deepen and further substantiate bilateral ties, he said.

Briefing the host on the outcomes of his talks with General Secretary of the Communist Party of Việt Nam Central Committee and President Tô Lâm and the documents signed during his visit, President Mulino expressed his hope that the Vietnamese National Assembly would support major orientations to strengthen bilateral relations and the implementation of agreements reached, producing concrete results for the development and interests of the two countries’ people.

The Panamanian President also expressed his wish to welcome NA President Mẫn on an official visit to Panama to help further strengthen bilateral ties.

NA President Mẫn shared information on the role of the legislature in Việt Nam’s political system and the country’s development process. He said the Vietnamese legislature is shifting its legislative approach from management to enabling and guiding development, improving legislative quality and comprehensively completing institutions to create an optimal environment for rapid and sustainable development.

He informed the guest that the Vietnamese NA has established the Việt Nam-Panama Parliamentary Friendship Group, affirming that strengthening ties between the two legislatures is an important pillar of bilateral relations, helping consolidate political trust, promote and oversee the implementation of high-level agreements, and support the bilateral agenda.

The Vietnamese NA strongly supports the directions and measures agreed upon to strengthen bilateral relations, as well as the agreements signed during the Panamanian President’s visit, he said, adding that it would work alongside the Government to create a favourable legal framework for implementing bilateral agreements and realise the two countries’ significant untapped potential for cooperation.

President Mulino expressed his wish that two countries will continue to consolidate political trust through delegation exchanges and contacts at all levels, especially at the high level, while making greater use of bilateral cooperation mechanisms.

He also called for continued efforts to build a favourable and stable legal framework for bilateral cooperation, particularly in areas with potential such as trade, investment, finance and banking, tourism, agriculture, aviation, science-technology, digital transformation, and education-training.

Regarding cooperation between the two legislatures, President Mulino also agreed to support stronger delegation exchanges, as well as the sharing of legislative experience and the activities of committees and other legislative bodies in the two countries.

He also backed further enhancing the role of the legislatures in creating a favourable legal framework for bilateral relations, facilitating connections among government agencies, localities and businesses, and helping address bottlenecks and promote specific cooperation opportunities.

On the occasion, NA President Mẫn extended an invitation to Panamanian National Assembly President Shirley Castañedas to pay an official visit to Vietnam. President Mulino expressed his appreciation and said he would convey his invitation to the country’s top legislator. — VNA/VNS