Vietnam and Singapore are two countries with typical, outstanding and
high-level relations in many aspects, affirmed Vietnamese Ambassador to
Singapore Tran Hai Hau.
Speaking to a Vietnam News
Agency correspondent in Singapore on the occasion of the two countries’
40 th anniversary of diplomatic ties, the ambassador said the visits
to Singapore made by President Truong Tan Sang (who chose the lion city
as the first leg of his visit after taking office two years ago), Party
General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong last year and Prime Minister Nguyen
Tan Dung in June, are examples of the close and mutual trust political
relationship between the two nations.
Meanwhile,
Singaporean President Tony Tan Keng Yam selected Vietnam as the first
country to visit after he assumed office last year, and Prime Minister
Lee Hsien Loong plans to pay a visit to Vietnam this September, he
noted.
The ambassador went on to say that the two
countries’ ministries, branches and localities have regularly conducted
delegation exchanges to share experience and discuss measures to
strengthen cooperation and boost economic connectivity.
Singapore has so far invested 28 billion USD in Vietnam, ranking
second among foreign partners investing in Vietnam and accounting for 13
percent of the total FDI in the country, said the ambassador. He added
that in the first six months of this year, Singaporean registered
capital to Vietnam reached 3.4 billion USD.
“According to
Singaporean statistics, two-way trade hit 15.9 billion SGD (nearly 12.4
billion USD) in 2012, of which, Vietnam’s exports to Singapore rose to
35 percent. These were impressive figures,” said Ambassador Hau.
The
two countries have seen eventful people-to-people and cultural
exchanges, said the ambassador, adding that 20 flights connect Vietnam
and Singapore every day.
“Vietnam and Singapore often work
closely in ASEAN cooperation towards building the ASEAN Community by
2015, and actively collaborate at regional and international forums. The
two sides also share viewpoints on issues relating to regional
security, peace, stability and joint cooperation,” the ambassador noted.
Regarding boosting Vietnam-Singapore ties in the coming
time, Hau said that the document on the strategic partnership, which is
scheduled to be signed during Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s visit to
Vietnam this September, will be a legal foundation and initiate the most
comprehensive cooperation framework up to now.
It
will provide orientations for the two countries’ ministries, agencies
and localities to expand and deepen their relations and cooperation in
the fields of mutual interests, he said.
Another
factor is Vietnam’s consistent policy of openness, active regional and
international integration and creating a clearer investment environment,
said the ambassador.
Vietnam’s ministries, agencies
and localities have also attached special importance to Singapore’s
investment projects, he said, stressing this is an important factor to
continue expanding bilateral economic, trade and investment ties.
Added
to this, cooperation achievements made by the two countries over the
last 40 years and their current bilateral economic, trade and investment
cooperation stature will make a firm foundation for their strategic
partnership, stated Ambassador Hau.
Last but not least,
ASEAN-Singapore connectivity together with connections within the ASEAN
region will interact and boost bilateral ties, he said, adding that the
future Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement and the Regional
Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), to which both Vietnam and
Singapore are members, are expected to further enhance their economic
ties in the time to come.
“These are the factors to ensure
that Vietnam-Singapore relations in the next 40 years will reach a new
height, for the development interests and prosperity of the two
nations,” Hau said.
To mark the 40 th anniversary of their
diplomatic ties, apart from high-ranking visits by their leaders,
Vietnam and Singapore plan to break the ground of their fifth industrial
park (VSIP5) in the central province of Quang Ngai.
Cultural
exchanges include a photo exhibition on the two countries’ relations,
art performances by Ho Chi Minh City artists in Singapore and the
publication of a joint stamp collection, said the ambassador.-VNA