The first Vietnam-Russia inter-parliament meeting has opened up new areas of cooperation that are poised to foster the comprehensive strategic partnership.

Vietnam’s National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan and Chairman of the State Duma of Russia Vyacheslav V. Volodin. Photo: VNA

Vietnam’s National Assembly (NA) Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan and Chairman of the State Duma of Russia Vyacheslav V. Volodin co-chaired the meeting in Moscow last week.

“It would be right for us to work more intensively in the economic sphere, developing both foreign economic relations and goods circulation. It is clearly insufficient for the level of our relations. […] For our part, we must do everything to develop cooperation more effectively than today,” the State Duma quoted Viacheslav Volodin.

“When we talk about the work of our inter-parliament commission, it should do everything to ensure more dynamical development of foreign economic relations,” he said at the meeting.

Viacheslav Volodin supported the idea of creating working groups and said that the adoption of legislative decisions would entail a more active development of relations.

Meanwhile, Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan said “We will do our best to develop cooperation between our countries, trade and economic relations better. To ensure that these results correspond to good political relations between our countries.”

Vietnam’s National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan and Chairman of the State Duma of Russia Vyacheslav V. Volodin at the first inter-parliament meeting in Moscow. Photo: Duma.org.ru

Economic in focus, oil and gas remain among key pillars

Both sides agreed to focus on economic ties.

Ngan said that it is necessary to discuss issues of cooperation in the oil and gas sector, agriculture, and tourism. She proposed having separate working groups for each field.

Vietnam expected to continue cooperation with Russia in power projects, especially one in the Center for Nuclear Science and Technology.

Viacheslav Volodin said the two countries need to do everything to develop more actively foreign economic relations and goods circulation so that Russian companies can more actively participate in the development of these relations, implementing investment projects.

He noted “It is extremely important to create all conditions for business development and implementation of investment projects both in Russia and Vietnam on the principles of developing bilateral cooperation.”

“If we reach US$10 billion (turnover), this will give an additional impetus to our countries. This will develop the economies of our countries and increase their prosperity,” said the chairman of the State Duma.

The leaders stressed the importance of more than 70 years of diplomatic relations and 25 years since the signing of the treaty on the principles of friendly relations between Vietnam and Russia, and the two parties.

They affirmed the parliament’s significant role in strengthening the legal basis for the bilateral relations and close coordination between the two sides at international parliamentary organizations, such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum, meetings with dialogue partners at the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly, the Meeting of Speakers of Eurasian Countries’ Parliaments, and the International Forum “Development of Parliamentarism”.