State President greets AFP Chairman

The State President made the affirmation yesterday in Ha Noi while receiving Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the French news agency Emmanuel Hoog who was on a working visit to Viet Nam.

Mr. Quang hailed the traditional role of the AFP in communications as one of the three largest press agencies in the world. AFP was also the first and only foreign press outlet based in Viet Nam since the 1950s. 

The host leader expressed appreciation for AFP’s widespread and comprehensive coverage of Viet Nam through traditional and novel news platforms over nearly 70 years.

The Vietnamese media landscape is changing significantly with the emergence of new media platforms such as digital, Internet and electronic news, he said, adding that more than half of Vietnamese population are subscribing to the Internet. 

The State President acknowledged the effective cooperation between AFP and domestic press agencies such as the Viet Nam News Agency and Viet Nam Television Mr. Quang said, adding that there remain many cooperation opportunities for AFP in Viet Nam.  

He stressed that the development of the Viet Nam-France strategic partnership is always one of the priorities in Viet Nam’s external policy of openness, active and proactive integration into the world. In 2018, the two countries would mark the 45th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties. This would offer a good opportunity for the two sides to consolidate mutual understanding and foster the special relations.  

In reply, Mr. Hoog underlined the importance of AFP’s permanent presence in Viet Nam to do its job

The AFP said the Chairman has made strong commitments to Viet Nam regarding professional cooperation and is modernizing ways of communications. 

The guest also mentioned challenges of press agencies amid the Internet boom era./.

By Kim Anh