Vice President Đặng Thị Ngọc Thịnh (right) meets with Australian Governor of Queensland Paul de Jersey in Hà Nội on Wednesday. VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam treasures its friendship and co-operation with Australia, said Vice President Đặng Thị Ngọc Thịnh as she received Australian Governor of Queensland Paul de Jersey in Hà Nội on Wednesday.

The Vice President said the increasing number of high-level delegation exchanges shows the strength of political and diplomatic ties between the two nations.
The official said the two countries’ security-defence co-operation has also been improved, referring to Australia’s support for flying Vietnamese peacekeepers to South Sudan with two of its Royal Air Force aircraft last year.
Saying the potential for economic collaboration remains extensive, Thịnh said she hopes Queensland, with its strengths in industry, agriculture, education, and research, will become a leader in pushing Việt Nam-Australia ties forward. 

Thịnh said she hopes Queensland will strengthen its co-operation with Việt Nam in education, particularly the training of Vietnamese students and public personnel.  

There are currently about 31,000 Vietnamese students in Australia, 2,000 of whom are in Queensland. Australia has already offered a significant number of scholarships to students in Việt Nam, while Australian universities and their Vietnamese peers have participated in several joint training programmes.
Paul de Jersey said he hopes Queensland will have more chances to engage with Vietnamese localities in education, tourism, energy and technology. — VNS