National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyễn Thị Kim Ngân yesterday receives Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Hungary, Gergely Gulyás, in Hà Nội. – VNA/VNS Photo Phạm Kiên

HÀ NỘI – National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyễn Thị Kim Ngân yesterday urged greater exchanges of visits, sharing of experiences and consultations on international issues between Vietnamese and Hungarian parliaments.

Receiving Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Hungary, Gergely Gulyás, in Hà Nội, she said Việt Nam always remembers the valuable and efficient assistance provided by the Hungarian people and State and follows with keen interest Hungary’s achievements in socio-economic development and its integration into the European Union. 

She said the creation of political trust has been a strong driving force for both nations to step up across the board co-operation. The value of two-way trade between the two countries in 2016 had risen 10 per cent over the previous year, she noted.

Ngân also thanked Hungary for supporting Việt Nam’s candidacy for seats at several UN bodies and reaffirmed Việt Nam’s backing of Hungary’s bid for membership of the UN Human Rights Council for the 2017-2019 term. 
Gergely Gulyás, who is also Vice President of the Fidesz-Hungarian Civic Alliance, said he highly evaluated the growing socio-political ties between the two countries, especially the signing of a framework agreement on a 440 million euro credit. This marked a new development in bilateral economic co-operation, he said. 
He said he was impressed with Việt Nam’s socio-economic achievements, and affirmed that Hungary considers Viet Nam an important bridge to the ASEAN bloc. 
He said Hungary will continue supporting Việt Nam at international forums, and echoed his Vietnamese counterparts wish for increased exchanges and sharing of experiences between the two parliaments.

Earlier, Gulyas held talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Uông Chu Lưu.

They shared the view that bilateral economic and trade ties have yet to match the potential despite the traditional ties of friendship and co-operation enjoyed by both countries.

NA Vice Chairman Lưu suggested that the two sides review implementation of agreements reached at the 6th session of the Việt Nam-Hungary joint committee on economic co-operation and work together on future plans. 
He urged Hungary to push for the European Union’s signing and ratification of the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) as well as recognition of Việt Nam as a market economy. 
He also asked for Hungary’s help in tourism, human resources training and heritage conservation. 
Gulyas responded that Hungary would advocate for early signing and ratification of EVFTA. 
Noting that more than 4,000 Vietnamese citizens had studied in Hungary in the 1990s, Gulyas said he hopes his country will grant more scholarships to Vietnamese students to pursue higher studies in his country, especially in engineering and medicine. 
Gulyas also expressed his wish for greater parliamentary contacts on law-making as well as stronger tourism ties. –  VNS