Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc (R) receives Frances Adamson, Special Envoy of Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in Hà Nội yesterday. — VNA/VNS Photo Thống Nhất

HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc affirmed that Việt Nam wants to elevate ties with Australia during a reception in Hà Nội yesterday for Frances Adamson, Special Envoy of Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. 

Phúc underlined the strong development of the comprehensive partnership between Việt Nam and Australia, noting that the two countries had become important partners in many fields. 

He thanked the Australian PM for inviting him to the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit scheduled for March 2018, saying that the event will strengthen ties between ASEAN and Australia, and Việt Nam and Australia in particular. 

Speaking highly of Australia’s supply of official development assistance to Việt Nam, the PM also expressed his wish that Australian firms would pay more attention to Việt Nam, particularly in fields of mutual strength such as hi-tech agriculture, animal husbandry, infrastructure, information technology, education and high technology. 

He hoped that Australia would become one of the biggest investors in Việt Nam and facilitate the import of Vietnamese goods, particularly tropical fruits and aquatic products. 

According to the PM, the more than 30,000 Vietnamese students now studying in Australia are a resource for bilateral relations in the future. He hoped that the Australian government would create conditions for more Vietnamese students to study there. 

Welcoming the bilateral vacation labour programme that was launched in March 1, 2017, he asked that Australia receive more Vietnamese workers in the near future. 

Việt Nam welcomed Australia’s increasingly important role in the region and the world, especially Australia’s strong statements in support of Việt Nam and ASEAN’s stance on the East Sea issue, including the respect for international law, especially the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, Phúc said. 

Adamson, who is also Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Australia, said the two countries share common interests in terms of regional strategy, open trade environment and regional affairs because Australia attaches high importance to ASEAN. She affirmed that Australia wants to lift bilateral ties to a greater height. 

The special envoy conveyed a letter from the Australian PM to PM Phúc. — VNS