Deputy PM greets newly appointed Uruguayan Ambassador

Deputy PM and FM Pham Binh Minh receives newly appointed Uruguayan Ambassador to Viet Nam Portell Casanova Maria Del Rosario, Ha Noi, April 3, 2019. Photo: VGP

The Deputy PM congratulated Maria Del Rosario on her appointment, voicing his belief that with her experience, the diplomat will work to extensively step up Viet Nam-Uruguay cooperation in both the bilateral and multilateral aspects.

Politburo member Minh suggested the two sides strengthen the exchange of high-level delegations, while further promoting the role of cooperation mechanisms, including the Joint Committee on economic, trade and investment cooperation and the political consultation mechanism between the two countries.

He asked the ambassador to work closely with Vietnamese ministries, sectors and localities to agree on specific measures to enhance bilateral economic, trade and investment ties, noting that two-way trade revenues still remain modest, reaching just US$120 million in 2018.

On the occasion, Deputy PM Minh extended his thanks and called on Uruguay to continue supporting Viet Nam to become a nonpermanent member of the United Nations Security Council for 2020-2021, while urging for closer coordination between the two countries at multilateral forums.

For her part, Ambassador Maria Del Rosario affirmed that Uruguay highly appreciates Viet Nam’s role and position, and attaches importance to further deepening its relations with the Southeast Asian country.

She thanked the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry for having actively supported the opening of the Uruguay Consulate and the introduction of the Uruguayan Honorary Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City, thus contributing to boosting cooperation between Viet Nam and Uruguay across diverse fields.

Uruguay is the country where the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR) is headquartered, with a population of about three million. The country is strong in the fields of agriculture, high technology and finance-banking. Although agricultural production accounts for only 9% of GDP, agricultural products take up more than 50% of Uruguay’s exports.

The Uruguayan government’s current strategy is to stimulate growth based on boosting exports to traditional partners in MERCOSUR, the EU and North America. Uruguay’s traditional export item include beef, rice, wool, fish, leather and leather goods, while its key imports are machinery, chemicals, fuel, consumer goods and clothes.

By Vien Nhu