Vietnam bolsters relations with UK, Poland

Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son met with UK Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Justice David Lammy in New York on September 24, on the sidelines of the High-Level General Debate of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 80).

Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son (C) meets with Raj Subramaniam, President and Chief Executive Officer of the US’s FedEx Corporation. (Photo: VNA)
Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son (C) meets with Raj Subramaniam, President and Chief Executive Officer of the US’s FedEx Corporation. (Photo: VNA)

New York (VNA) - Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son met with UK Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Justice David Lammy in New York on September 24, on the sidelines of the High-Level General Debate of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 80).

Expressing his delight at the strong development of bilateral relations in recent times, Son affirmed that Vietnam always attaches importance to and wishes to further strengthen its Strategic Partnership with the UK.

To promote future cooperation, he proposed the two sides boost delegation exchanges, especially at the high level, on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the Strategic Partnership, and discuss orientations to elevate the ties to new heights.

David Lammy highly valued Vietnam’s growing role and position in the region and internationally, while expressing his support for the country in building an international financial centre, as well as his desire to promote cooperation in migration, renewable energy, and science and technology. He also emphasised that the UK will continue to assist Vietnam in responding to climate change, particularly in effectively implementing the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP).

The two sides agreed to maintain the effective implementation of bilateral cooperation mechanisms and make full use of the UK’s accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) to further tap into the potential for bilateral cooperation.

On the same day, the Deputy PM held a meeting with Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Radoslaw Sikorski, during which they appreciated the long-standing traditional friendship, which has developed over 75 years (1950–2025), and agreed that the two countries have great potential and favourable opportunities to elevate bilateral relations to a new level.

Son expressed his gratitude for Poland’s valuable support to Vietnam in its nation-building and development process, and proposed the two sides work closely together to fully and effectively implement the outcomes of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s official visit to Poland in January, and promote high-level delegation exchanges in the coming period on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.

He also urged the Polish Parliament to ratify the EU–Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) soon and actively voice support for the European Commission to lift its “yellow card” on Vietnam’s seafood exports related to illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

Sikorski affirmed that Poland always regards Vietnam as an important partner in Southeast Asia. He proposed the two countries continue to strengthen cooperation in economy, trade, investment, labour, science and technology, education and training, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges.

Both sides also agreed to maintain close coordination and mutual support at multilateral forums, while exchanging views on several international and regional issues of mutual concern.

On this occasion, Deputy PM Son received Raj Subramaniam, President and Chief Executive Officer of the US’s FedEx Corporation.

He congratulated FedEx on its successful business operations in Vietnam and appreciated the company’s contributions to the normalisation and development of the two countries’ relations, especially in the year marking the 30th anniversary of normalisation and the 2nd anniversary of the upgrade of relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

He affirmed that the US is one of Vietnam’s most important partners and that the two governments are actively cooperating to maintain momentum and foster new opportunities for cooperation across all areas.

Son also stressed that the Party and State of Vietnam attach great importance to and create the most favourable conditions for both domestic and foreign enterprises, including US businesses, to invest and operate effectively and sustainably in Vietnam.

Subramaniam highly valued Vietnam’s socio-economic development strategy, particularly in science and technology, innovation, infrastructure, and airport development. He said that FedEx is promoting plans to expand its operations in Vietnam and hopes for support from Vietnamese government agencies to facilitate this process./.

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