Open co-operation and bright future for Vietnam-Australia relations

Nhan Dan reporter Ha Thanh Giang recaps Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung’s official visit to Australia, marking a new stage in the bilateral relations.

After the nine-hour flight, PM Nguyen Tan Dung and the high-ranking Vietnamese Government delegation arrived in Sydney, the largest and most dynamic city in Australia to begin the official visit to the kangaroo country.

The visit made by PM Nguyen Tan Dung, accompanied by seven ministers, demonstrated Vietnam’s commitment to friendship with Australia. In recent years, relations between the two countries have seen strong growth. Among the eight million international tourists to Vietnam last year, more than 300,000 were from Australia. Education has also been a bright spot in bilateral relations. About 30,000 Vietnamese students are currently studying in Australia. In the time to come, more and more Australian students will study in Vietnam under the Australian Government’s New Colombo Plan in order to strengthen educational exchanges. There are nearly 300,000 overseas Vietnamese living and working in the country. Australian PM Tony Abbot spoke highly of the Vietnamese community in Australia for their positive contributions to the development of the country.

PM Nguyen Tan Dung and his Australian counterpart Tony Abbot (VNA)

During the talks and bilateral meetings with Australian leaders, including opposition parties, Australian leaders expressed their impression of strong growth and the growing position of Vietnam in the Asia-Pacific region.

They affirmed their support and consensus on strengthening the comprehensive partnership with Vietnam, and were happy to see the two sides commit to bring bilateral relations to a new height. During talks between PM Nguyen Tan Dung and his Australian counterpart Tony Abbot, the PMs pledged to increase the exchange of high-level delegations and maintain meetings between the two countries’ leaders and officials in order to enhance the existing collaboration.

They also agreed on measures to promote the efficiency of their bilateral partnership, especially in prioritised areas such as politics, defence, security, the economy, investment, trade, agriculture, education and training, among others.

They highlighted the significance of maintaining peace and stability as well as maritime and aviation security, safety and freedom in the East Sea together with the settlement of disputes on the basis of international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The two Government leaders also agreed that it is urgent to build a Code of Conduct in the East Sea.

The Vietnamese PM’s visit to Australia also attracted special attention from the Australian public, especially scholars, and economic and political researchers. Currently, the Australian public is very interested in the security situation in the region.

There was great interest in the speech of PM Nguyen Tan Dung in his meeting with Australian scholars at the Lowy Institute, which focused on Vietnam-Australia relations - a brighter future for the benefit of both countries, for peace, stability and development in the region. PM Nguyen Tan Dung shared his views on Vietnam-Australia relations, national development as well as the emerging regional security environment.

The PM emphasised that Vietnam believes peace, stability, security, safety and freedom of navigation and aviation in the East Sea are in the common interest of countries both inside and outside the region. Highly valuing the concept of ‘strategic trust’ raised by PM Dung at the Shangri-la Dialogue in 2013, Professor Carl Thayer, the Lowy Institute said the concept is an important factor to guarantee peace and stability in the region.

Australian scholars were anxious to hear PM Dung’s statement on Vietnam’s stance on resolving disputes, particularly those in the East Sea. PM Dung explained clearly that Vietnam is consistent in resolving disputes through peaceful means on the basis of respecting international laws and standards of conduct in the region.

Vietnam always conducts itself properly and takes advantage of all opportunities to ease tensions, restore trust, boost friendship and co-operation, while being open to dialogue for a long-term solution on issues related to the East Sea which is acceptable for all sides.

Vietnam is deeply grateful to its Australian friends and hopes that they will continue to raise positive and objective voices to make practical contributions to regional peace, security, friendship, co-operation and development.

Vietnam supports Australia in playing a more important role in the forming regional structure. The country also wants to work closely with the oceanic country and other partners to build a dynamic and deeply integrated Asia in a peaceful, secure and stable environment of mutual development and prosperity.

During a business forum with the presence of hundreds of representatives from leading businesses and groups of both countries, PM Dung noted strongly that the Vietnamese Government supports Australian businesses in taking part in restructuring the Vietnamese economy, especially in fields of Australia’s strengths, including energy, telecommunications infrastructure, education-training, sustainable agriculture and finance.

The Government readily creates favourable conditions and hopes that Australian businesses will take a deserving position in the Vietnamese economy. The leader’s message was welcomed by the Australian business community who pay much attention to the Vietnamese market and consider the country as a leading partner in Asia Pacific.

During PM Dung’s meetings with leaders from Australian conglomerates, Telstra’s CFO said that the group was ready to help Vietnam develop 4G technology while Rio Tinto Limited wanted to expand mineral extraction in Vietnam, particularly bauxite mining and processing.

Santos Chairman, Kenneth Charles Borda valued co-operation with the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group and suggested to PM Dung that Santos wanted to expand its investment in exploring and extracting oil and gas, as well as to become a LPG gas supplier to Vietnam. Several other oceanic groups expressed their hopes to own further shares in large Vietnamese businesses.

Vietnam and Australia have never had such bright co-operation prospects as now, bringing multi-faceted friendly co-operation between the two countries into a new era. The image of PM Dung and his wife planting an Acacia Implexa tree - developed by Australian and Vietnamese scientists and widely planted throughout Vietnam - at the National Arboretum in Canberra, is significant as the tree symbolizes agricultural co-operation between the two countries.

Canberra would nourish the tree representing the Australia-Vietnam friendship, Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory Andrew James Barr said at the planting ceremony.

(Source: nhandan.org.vn)