Kazakhstan Ambassador to Việt Nam Yerlan Baizhanov.  — VNS Photo Mai Hiên

HÀ NỘI — Although bilateral trade between Việt Nam and Kazakhstan has increased considerably over the past three years, it hasn’t met the two countries’ potential, said Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Việt Nam, Yerlan Baizhanov.

“Kazakhstan wants to promote trade cooperation with Việt Nam,” he said at a press conference held last Friday.

He cited the fact that bilateral trade between the two countries reached US$542.7 million in 2017, an increase of 48 per cent compared with 2016’s figure. The total bilateral trade turnover was $387.6 million last year.

The ambassador emphasised the two countries’ potential for economic cooperation, saying their economies are reciprocal.

Kazakhstan can meet Việt Nam’s needs by providing agricultural products, metals, steel and aluminum and other chemical products as well as other industrial equipment to the country. At the same time, Việt Nam can export seafood products, clothing, tea and coffee and electronic products to Kazakhstan.

According to Ambassador Baizhanov, one of the important directions of economic and trade cooperation between Kazakhstan and Việt Nam is to create favourable conditions for the development of transport and logistics.

He suggested Việt Nam take advantage of Kazakhstan’s logistics potential.

Located in Central Asia and as a corridor connecting Asia and Europe, Kazakhstan will facilitate cargo transportation from Việt Nam and ASEAN countries to Europe and vice versa.

Specifically, the transportation of goods through China and connecting with Kazakhstan via rail would help reduce the reliance on shipping and shorten the delivery time, he said.

The ambassador said the two sides have been developing good relations for many decades and Việt Nam was an important partner in Southeast Asia.  

The official visit to Việt Nam by Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev in October 2011 as well as a visit to Kazakhstan by former President Trương Tấn Sang in September 2012 created new impetus for bilateral relations.

The two sides are keen to strengthen the multi-faceted relationship in all fields, including politics, economics-commerce, culture, tourism, and security.

Fighting against COVID-19 pandemic

At the press conference, the ambassador also lauded Việt Nam’s success in the fight against COVID-19.

He attributed the result to a combination of many factors, including efforts of the Vietnamese Government in mobilising all social resources and people to join in the fight against the disease, effective communication campaign and strictly supervising and quarantining suspected cases as well as entry from abroad.

“Việt Nam's effective measures have become a valuable experience for Kazakhstan in dealing with the disease,” he said.

The ambassador also thanked the National Assembly of Việt Nam for giving 20,000 medical masks to the people of Kazakhstan.

He said Kazakhstan’s coronavirus outbreak has reached a critical stage with the number of confirmed cases at 42,574 and 188 deaths as of July 2.

The country has to reintroduce quarantine regime as of July 5 as the COVID-19 cases count is increasing countrywide. — VNS