Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Wednesday suggested measures to facilitate bilateral cooperation with Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei during his talks with these nations’ leaders on the sidelines of the 42nd ASEAN summit.

After attending the plenary session of the 42nd ASEAN Summit, which takes place from Tuesday to Thursday in Indonesia, PM Chinh met with his Lao counterpart Sonexay Siphandone.

This is the first time Sonexay Siphandone has attended an ASEAN Summit since he took office in December last year.

Laos will be the Chair of ASEAN in 2024.

During his meeting with the Lao prime minister, PM Chinh affirmed that Vietnam pledges the highest support for Laos to successfully hold the 2024 ASEAN Chairmanship.

The head of the Lao government stated that Laos always endorses Vietnam’s election to UN agencies and international organizations.

The Lao prime minister expressed his thanks to Vietnam for supporting and effectively cooperating with Laos in promoting socio-economic growth. 

The top Lao official cited two projects to develop the NongKhang airport in Huaphanh Province and a friendship hospital in XiengKhuang Province as the epitomes of the sound cooperation between the two countries.

These two projects are slated for operation this month.

PM Chinh also took this occasion to invite his Lao counterpart to visit Vietnam in 2023.

According to the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsieng Loong on the same day accepted PM Chinh’s invitation to visit Vietnam in the second half of this year.

Vietnam and Singapore will celebrate the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic ties and the 10th anniversary of their strategic partnership this year.

PM Chinh and his Singaporean counterpart discussed the digital and green economy partnership that Vietnam and Singapore established in mid-February this year.

Both sides agreed to adjust and upgrade the Vietnam-Singapore Connectivity Framework Agreement and strengthen cooperation in the commercial generation of electricity.

Vietnam and Singapore will also boost their cooperation in the fields of national defense, public security, education and training, and develop highly-skilled human resources.

During the talks between the Vietnamese government and the Sultan of Brunei, Hassanal Bolkiah, the two leaders agreed to boost trade in a diversified and balanced manner, with a focus on oil and gas, chemicals, halal products, tourism cooperation, and people-to-people exchange.

PM Chinh proposed Brunei offer more favorable conditions for Vietnamese exports as well as for Vietnamese businesses to join oil and gas projects in Brunei.

Vietnam and Brunei should facilitate the signing of an MoU on agro-fishery cooperation while maintaining the operation of hotlines supporting fishing activities, PM Chinh suggested.

The Sultan of Brunei said that Vietnam and Brunei have more potential for further cooperation, thus they need to set new targets to beef up two-way trade.

The Vietnamese leader also forwarded the invitation of Vietnamese State President Vo Van Thuong to the Sultan and his spouse to visit Vietnam.

Similarly, PM Chinh while meeting with his Malaysian counterpart Anwar Ibrahim invited the latter to visit Vietnam at a proper time.

PM Chinh requested Malaysia to create more favorable conditions for Vietnamese products and services to enter Malaysia, including halal items, and called on Malaysian businesses to increase investment into Vietnam.

PM Anwar Ibrahim remarked that Vietnam remains among Malaysia’s important partners in the region and was looking forward to the Vietnamese state president’s visit to Malaysia late this year.

The top Malaysian official pledged to further advance the ties with Vietnam, especially in terms of maritime cooperation.

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