Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong (right) meets with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Hanoi, Vietnam, Dec 1, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

HANOI – China is ready to take coordinated steps in the next stage of cooperation with Vietnam in all fields to ensure steady progress in the building of a China-Vietnam community of a shared future, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Friday.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks while meeting with Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong in Hanoi.

China-Vietnam relations continue to develop at a high level, which not only benefits the people of both countries but is also conducive to regional and world peace and development, said the Chinese diplomat.

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He recalled that the leaders of both countries had agreed to cement China-Vietnam friendship and advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation and the Two Corridors and One Economic Circle plan, charting the future course for deepening the China-Vietnam comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

Both sides agreed to strengthen coordination among relevant authorities to further promote their comprehensive strategic cooperation and lay a solid foundation for the new stage of bilateral relations

Noting that China and Vietnam enjoy a deep traditional friendship and this year marks the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the China-Vietnam comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, Wang said that while the Vietnamese side regards consolidating relations with China as its strategic choice and top priority in its foreign policy, China also regards relations with Vietnam as a priority in its neighborhood diplomacy.

For his part, Thuong said both Vietnam and China are at a critical development stage, and enhancing bilateral cooperation will benefit each other's revitalization, pledging that his side is ready to work with China to continuously cement the Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

Thuong urged both sides to make thoughtful preparations for the important political agenda in the next stage and ensure full implementation of the consensus reached by the top leaders of both parties.

Noting that Chinese investment in Vietnam grew rapidly in the first 10 months of this year and bilateral trade maintained sound momentum, Thuong said he hoped both sides would further strengthen their cooperation in trade and investment, party-to-party exchanges, legislative institutions, local exchanges, youth, defense and security areas.

The two countries can also reinforce complementarity in seeking strategic synergy between the Belt and Road Initiative and the Two Corridors and One Economic Circle plan, and work more closely together in energy transition and critical infrastructure, Thuong said.

The Vietnamese side is ready for mutual support with China on international and regional affairs and is happy to see China achieve greater development and play a more important role in international affairs, Thuong said.

The 15th meeting of the China-Vietnam Steering Committee for Bilateral Cooperation, co-chaired by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang, is held in Hanoi, Vietnam, Dec 1, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

Steering committee meeting

The Chinese foreign minister and Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang co-chaired the 15th meeting of the Steering Committee for Bilateral Cooperation in Hanoi the same day. It was attended online and offline by the ministry and local leaders from both sides as members of the mechanism.

Under the strategic guidance of both leaders, bilateral relations have been developing at a high level, and strategic cooperation has been comprehensively deepened. The two sides have reached important consensus on upgrading bilateral relations, which will usher in a new stage of bilateral ties, Wang Yi said at the meeting.

China is ready to work with Vietnam to make good use of the steering committee for bilateral cooperation, a general management mechanism for overall coordination of bilateral cooperation, make overall planning for cooperation in the next stage and make positive contributions to advancing China-Vietnam relations in the new era, he said.

Noting that China-Vietnam relations have made great progress since the last meeting, Wang said effective high-level guidance, breakthroughs in practical cooperation, progress in maritime cooperation and strong multilateral support have laid a solid foundation for bilateral relations to enter a new stage.

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The two sides should maintain high-level strategic communication, strengthen cooperation mechanisms in national defense, public security, and security, jointly build a mutually beneficial, stable and unimpeded production and supply chain system, and strengthen personnel exchanges, Wang said.

He called on both sides to work together to safeguard international equity and justice, practice genuine multilateralism, and support each other on issues concerning their respective major interests.

For his part, Quang said as a "comrade and brother," Vietnam supports China in playing an increasingly important role in safeguarding regional and world peace and stability.

Vietnam agreed with China on the overall vision of the development of bilateral relations in the next stage, he said, adding that Vietnam is ready to increase high-level exchange of visits and boost inter-party and parliamentary exchanges with China.