Top legislator hosts Latvian Foreign Minister

ABO/VNA – Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan suggested the Vietnamese and Latvian legislatures increase the exchange of all-level delegations at a reception for Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics in Hanoi on July 17.

Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan (right) and Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics (Photo: VNA)

The Vietnamese NA will continue its close coordination with the Latvian Parliament (Saeima) at regional and international parliamentary forums to which both are members like the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), while maintaining meetings on the sidelines of multilateral forums and discussions on regional and international issues of shared concern, Ngan said.

The top legislator asked Edgars Rinkevics to convey her invitation to the Latvian Parliament’s Speaker to pay an official visit to Vietnam.

She expressed belief that the Latvian Foreign Minister’s visit will contribute to deepening the traditional friendship and cooperation between the two countries in a practical and effective way.

Ngan thanked Latvia for supporting Vietnam’s candidacy for a non-permanent seat at the UN Security Council for 2020-2021 and called for more support and coordination from the country during performing the post.

Vietnam is Latvia’s biggest trade partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) while Latvia is Vietnam’s largest Baltic trade partner, with two-way trade reaching 187.2 million USD in 2018 and 88.9 million USD in the first five months of this year.

However, the bilateral trade has yet to match the fruitful political and diplomatic ties as well as cooperation potential of the two countries, she said.

The top legislator said the Vietnam-Latvia business conference and trade and investment promotion activities held during the visit have created cooperation and business opportunities for enterprises of the two countries.

Mentioning the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), she said the deals would bring about practical benefits to not only the Vietnam-EU cooperation but also the economic, trade and investment ties between Vietnam and Latvia.

Ngan appealed to the Latvian Government to create more favourable conditions for the Vietnamese community to stabilise their lives and run business in the country.

For his part, Edgars Rinkevics suggested the Vietnamese and Latvian legislatures step up their partnership and soon establish a friendly parliamentarians’ group in each country.

The minister told his host that Vietnam and Latvia are considering the signing of an agreement on labour cooperation, and expressed his hope for stronger bilateral trade and investment ties.

Lativa will make all-out efforts to urge the European Parliament to soon ratify the EVFTA and the Latvian Parliament to pass the EVIPA, he said.

The two sides touched upon regional and international issues of shared concern, including the East Sea issue.

(Source: VNA)