France increases presence in VN, Southeast Asia

French President Francois Hollande

The two countries set up diplomatic ties on April 12, 1973. Over the past four decades, the two sides have strived to overcome differences in order to comprehensively develop the relationship across all domains, culminating in the signing of the strategic partnership agreement in September 2013.

From the beginning of this year, the visits by President of the French National Assembly Claude Bartolone, Minister of Defense Jean - Yves Le Drian, and President Francois Hollande show that France is increasing presence in Viet Nam in particular and Southeast Asia in general, said Vietnamese Ambassador to France Nguyen Ngoc Son.

The two countries have established a number of cooperation mechanisms, including strategic dialogues diplomacy and defense and high-level economic dialogue.

France is the 5^th biggest European trading partner of Viet Nam in the Europe. The two-way trade value reached US$4.2 billion last year.

It is also the second European investor in Viet Nam with total registered capital of US$3.4 billion.

According to Professor Pierre Journoud from Paul-Valery University, Southeast Asia is taking an increasingly important position in France’s foreign policies over the recent years, especially since Mr. Hollande became French President./.

By Hai Minh