Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has pledged to facilitate the operation of Russian oil firm Rosneft in Vietnam during a recent meeting with its top executive.

The Vietnamese government will continue facilitating Rosneft’s activities in Vietnam, as well as the cooperation between the Russian firm and the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) in  oil and gas exploration and exploitation, Premier Dung said at the Saturday meeting in Hanoi with Igor Sechin, Secretary General of the Russia National Energy Commission and head of the energy giant.

The energy cooperation between Vietnam and Russia is an important and strategic pillar in the two countries’ all-around ties, Prime Minister Dung told his Russian guest.

Meanwhile, Sechin expressed his hope that Vietnam will keep supporting and creating favorable conditions for Rosneft, which operates in oil and gas exploration and exploitation, and produces oil and petrochemical products, to expand its investment in the country. As a Russian energy giant, Rosneft has oil reserves of about 22.8 billion barrels.