VILNIUS – Prime Minister of Lithuania Saulius Skvernelis expressed his desire to enhance people-to-people and cultural exchange, tourism and education co-operation with Việt Nam during a working session with Vice President Đặng Thị Ngọc Thịnh in Vilnius on Monday. 

The Vietnamese Vice President visited the country on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties.  

Skvernelis said the Lithuanian government highly values ties with Việt Nam and wishes to work together in fields of shared concern such as food processing, medical equipment, chemicals, information technology and renewable energy.

Thịnh, who is in Lithuania from Sunday to Tuesday, spoke highly of progress in bilateral friendship, especially in terms of trade. She suggested working closely together to boost trade promotion and seek opportunities in each other’s markets.
She proposed that the Lithuanian government offer all possible support to Vietnamese businesses to bring agro-forestry-fishery enterprises and apparel to Lithuania and other Baltic countries. 
Việt Nam is willing to open its market and help Lithuania access ASEAN markets, she said. 
Both sides agreed to turn economic ties into a priority in the bilateral partnership. They also agreed to promptly negotiate and sign several agreements to create a legal framework for collaboration while offering mutual support at international organizations such as the United Nations, the UNESCO and the Asia-Europe Meeting. 
At the round-table business conference held on the same day, Deputy Foreign Minister of Lithuania Albinas Zananavicius affirmed that the visit makes important contributions to advancing economic ties between the two nations, especially as negotiations on the EU-Việt Nam Free Trade Agreement proceed.

Zananavicius took the occasion to brief guests about Lithuania’s competitive strengths in information and food technology and wood processing. 
Lithuanian firms expressed their interest in doing business in Việt Nam and wished to receive legal guidance to form joint ventures. 
Vice President Thịnh also met staff of the Vietnamese embassy in Poland and Lithuania and Vietnamese nationals in the host country. — VNS