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Philippines, India agree to boost bilateral relations

India and the Philippines have agreed to further strengthen their bilateral partnership in areas including defence, maritimes, law enforcement, trade and investement.

The decision was made within the framework of the official visit to India by Philippine Secretary for Foreign Affairs Enrique Manalo from June 27-30.

Indian Minister of External Affairs Dr. S. Jaishankar and his Fillipo counterpart Manalo co-chaired the 5th meeting of their Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC) in New Delhi on June 29.

In a joint statement issued after the meeting, the two sides agreed to upgraded official interaction among defense agencies, opening of the resident Defense Attaché office in Manila, considering India’s offer for concessional Line of Credit to meet Philippines’ defense requirements.

Acknowledging the growing importance of the maritime sector for both countries, they welcomed the bilateral Maritime Dialogue and the increased cooperation on hydrography.

They also look forward to the signing of the MoU on Enhanced Maritime Cooperation between the Indian Coast Guard and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).

On law enforcement cooperation, they encouraged early negotiations for a bilateral Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty on Criminal Matters and a Treaty on Transfer of Sentenced Persons. The first round of talks will be held in the Philippines in this August.

According to the joint statement, the two sides recognised terrorism and transnational crimes as common security threats, The two ministers directed that the 2nd Joint Working Group (JWG) on Counter-Terrorism meet in the Philippines in 2023 and discuss forging a Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Preventing and Combating Terrorism and Transnational Crime.

On trade and investment, they expressed their satisfaction at the growing pace of bilateral trade, which had for the first time crossed 3 billion USD in 2022-23 and agreed to begin negotiations on a bilateral Preferential Trade Agreement./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

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Thailand’s economy picks up in May

Thailand’s economy in May improved from the previous month as tourism gathered momentum and private consumption increased while exports remained weak, according to the central bank.

The Bank of Thailand (BOT) expects economic growth at 3.6% this year and 3.8% next year, with the tourism sector a key driver, BOT said in a statement on June 30.

In May, Thailand recorded a current account deficit of 2.8 billion USD, after a revised deficit of 0.6 billion USD the previous month, it said.

Exports, a key driver of growth, dropped 5.9% year-on-year in May, from a 4.9% year-on-year drop the previous month.

Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy expanded by a more than expected 2.7% in the first quarter from a year earlier thanks to strong recovery of the tourism sector.

The BOT said it will closely monitor global financial market votality as well as the formation of a new government after the May 14 general election.

Thailand’s household debt to grosss domestic product ratio stood at 90.6% in the first quarter ofthis year, down from 91.4% in the previous quarter, it added./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

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Japanese expert lauds Vietnam’s “bamboo diplomacy”

Professor Go Ito from Japan’s Meiji University has emphasised flexibility in Vietnam’s foreign policy in maintaining relations with countries, referring to its “bamboo diplomacy.”

The term “bamboo diplomacy” was coined by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong during a diplomatic conference in 2016 and reiterated at the first national conference on foreign affairs in 2021. During these meetings, the leader likened Vietnam’s foreign policy to bamboo, with strong roots, solid stems, and flexible branches.

In an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA)’s correspondents in Japan, the professor held that the main concepts of “bamboo diplomacy” lie with resilience, flexibility and modesty.

Vietnam is standing in an environment that enables the country to gain an important position in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and boost political and economic ties with Japan and the Republic of Korea (RoK), he said.

Regarding the Vietnam-Japan relationship, the professor noted that geopolitical and geoeconomic factors would be impulses for the bilateral ties./

Source: Vietnam News Agency

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Vietnam, Australia seek to reduce carbon emission

A workshop on using clean and renewable energy to reduce carbon emission was held in Hanoi on June 30.

The event was organised by the Ministry of Science and Technology in collaboration with the Vietnamese Association of Intellectuals and Experts in Australia (VASEA), the Australian’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), and University of Technology Sydney (UTS). It aimed to share challenges in reducing carbon emission, ensuring energy security and strengthening future collaboration in innovation ecosystems between scientists and institutions of the two countries.

Speaking at the event, Australian Ambassador to Vietnam Andrew Goledzinowski highlighted the Australian Government’s activities to reduce carbon and support Vietnam to promote the development of an innovative startup ecosystem and accelerate technology transfer in this regard.

He said that this is a chance for Australian and Vietnamese businesses to cooperate with each other. In the context that the Fourth Industrial Revolution technology is developing rapidly, clean energy and digital transformation have brought many cooperative opportunities for businesses of the two countries.

Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Bui The Duy emphasised that theme of the workshop is very meaningful as , Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh at the COP26 which took place in Glasgow, Scotland, said Vietnam would adopt drastic measures to reduce emissions with its own resources and support of the international community to meet the target of net-zero emission by 2050. Thus, he said, it is necessary for the sci-tech sector to work together to research, connect and learn from Australia’s experience in technology transfer, and promote efficient energy transition, contributing to reducing carbon emission in the near future.

Presentations at the event focused on carbon reduction issues and goals, especially carbon-related electricity.

Australia used to strongly produce electricity from coal, but it had to shift to other resources and Vietnam is also gradually working towards this goal.

Like Vietnam, Australia has also committed to net-zero emissions by 2050, therefore the partnership between Vietnam and Australia, along with technology transformation, is expected to contribute to stronger promotion of energy transition to cut carbon emissions in the coming time./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

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Rome seminar talks path towards socialism in Vietnam

Vietnamese and Italian experts looked into theories on the path towards socialism in Vietnam at a roundtable seminar in Rome on June 30.

The event was held by the Vietnamese Embassy in Italy on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the diplomatic ties between the two countries.

Speaking at the seminar, Associate Prof. Dr. Pham Van Linh, Vice Chairman of the Central Theory Council, presented theories on socialism and the path towards socialism in Vietnam.

He said developing a socialist-oriented market economy is a fundamental, innovative theoretical breakthrough of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), which is an important theoretical achievement after nearly 40 years of Doi Moi (Renewal).

Linh also emphasised the parallel between economic and social policies, and economic growth and social progress and equality in Vietnam, saying thanks to Doi Moi, Vietnam has posted an average economic growth rate of 7% over the past nearly four decades.

Last year, its GDP reached about 400 billion USD, and per capita income stood at 4,100 USD, he added.

General Secretary of the Italian Communist Party Mauro Alboresikl spoke highly of outcomes of 13th National Congress of the CPV, saying Vietnam is creative in national development.

The path to socialism in Vietnam has revived ideals and perspectives of socialism on a global scale, helping raise the country’s reputation in the international arena, he continued.

Other Italian participants lauded Vietnam’s strong economic growth and Doi Moi, stressing that Vietnam is on the right path towards socialism./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

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Cambodian People’s Party celebrates 72nd founding anniversary

The Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) organised a meeting in Phnom Penh on July 1 to celebrate its 72nd founding anniversary (June 28).

The event, which brought together more than 70,000 party members and officials, and the public, was co-chaired by CPP President and Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen and CPP Honorary President and National Assembly President Samdech Heng Samrin.

Addressing the meeting, Hun Sen recalled the formation and development of the CPP, originally named the Kampuchean People’s Revolutionary Party, and highlighted changes brought about by the CPP to Cambodians.

Also on July 1, political parties in Cambodia began a three-week campaign for the 7th-term National Assembly election scheduled to be held on July 23.

On this occasion, Hun Sen called on the public to support the CPP’s platform on national construction and defence for 2023-2028, which was designed to ensure the protection of peace and sustainability on the path of development and improvement of people’s livelihood towards realising Cambodia’s vision of becoming an upper middle-income country by 2030 and a high-income country by 2050.

The election campaign will last until July 21./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

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Ho Chi Minh City tightens connection with Canadian localities

A delegation from the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee, in collaboration with the Vietnam Trade Office in Canada, organised a Vietnam-Canada business forum in Toronto on June 30 to introduce the city’s position and potential and connect businesses of Vietnam and Canada.

The forum is part of activities to celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries and marks the 5th anniversary of the signing of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

Speaking at the event, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Vo Van Hoan emphasised that the city – Vietnam’s largest economic hub is home to more than 200,000 businesses. It has a stable growth rate and a per capita income of nearly 7,000 USD in 2022.

Currently, the city is continuing to promote administrative reform, digital transformation, and business and investment environment and ensure socio-political stability in order to create favourable conditions for foreign investors, including those from Canada.

Hoan said the cooperation relationship between Ho Chi Minh City and Canada is still modest and yet to commensurate with the potential of the two sides. Canada ranked 22nd out of 117 countries and territories investing in Ho Chi Minh City, with a total investment capital of about 130 million USD, although Vietnam and Canada are both members of the CPTPP and Vietnam is Canada’s largest partner in ASEAN with a two-way trade turnover of more than 10 billion USD.

Senator Victor Oh, Chairman of the Canada-Vietnam Parliamentary Friendship Group, said that the two countries need to better make use of the CPTPP and that Vietnam is a favourite destination for Canadian businesses thanks to its rapid growth.

Tran Thu Quynh, Vietnam Trade Counselor in Canada, said that the two countries have a lot of potential for cooperation and connectivity, not only in terms of supply chains but also production chains.

She called on Canadian businesses to promote investment in ASEAN and the Asia-Pacific region through the Vietnamese market and committed that her office will support businesses of both sides.

At the forum, business representatives from Ho Chi Minh City and Canada raised and discussed many topics including the need for market connectivity and specific measures to strengthen business relations between localities.

One of the remarkable connectivity plans is the Port of Montreal’s desire to cooperate with seaports in Ho Chi Minh City to form a shipping route connecting Ho Chi Minh City with the entire North American region./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency