VN looks toward broader cooperation with Saudi Arabia

VGP – Receiving Saudi Arabia’s newly-appointed Ambassador Salah Bin Ahmad Sarhan, PM Nguyễn Tấn Dũng today asserted that Việt Nam and Saudi Arabia share great advantages in petroleum, energy, and agriculture, which can be exploited to enhance bilateral cooperation.

November 12, 2009 6:07 PM GMT+7

PM Nguyễn Tấn Dũng receives Saudi Arabian Ambassador Salah Bin Ahmad Sarhan, Hà Nội, November 12, 2009 - Photo: VGP

Stressing that Việt Nam wants to deepen its cooperation with Saudi Arabia in various fields of their common advantages, PM Nguyễn Tấn Dũng highly spoke of the working visit made by Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources to Việt Nam in June as well as his idea for strategic oil and gas cooperation between the two countries.

PM Dũng suggested that the two sides should actively discuss agreements on double taxation avoidance, investment protection and banking cooperation.

He also underlined the necessity to establish a joint committee for bilateral cooperation.

Ambassador Salah Bin Ahmad Sarhan vowed to put the PM’s suggestions into reality, expressing his hope that the Government of Việt Nam would welcome working teams from his country to Việt Nam for experience of irrigation work and agriculture production.

Việt Nam and Saudi Arabia founded diplomatic ties in late 1999. Since then, the bilateral trade turnover has rapidly increased at around over US $100 million per year.

Việt Nam exports to Saudi Arabia textiles, aqua-products, coal, tea, computers and electronic spare parts, footwear, timber and furniture, plastic products, fine arts goods, agricultural products and food (pepper, cashew nut, rice, coffee, rubber, fruits and vegetables).

By Xuân Hoàng