HÀ NỘI — National Assembly (NA) Chairman Vương Đình Huệ arrived in Hà Nội on Sunday, concluding his trip to Europe to attend the fifth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament (WCSP5) in Austria and pay visits to the European Parliament, Belgium and Finland from September 5-11.
While there, the top lawmaker took part in more than 70 activities. The trip affirmed the foreign policy of Việt Nam’s Party and State; manifested the country’s proactiveness, activeness and responsibility; and raised its position. One of the focuses of the trip was vaccine diplomacy as well as cooperation against the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bilateral contacts within the framework of the conference helped consolidate and strengthen foreign relations between Việt Nam and other countries.
NA Chairman Huệ’s activities also helped deepen friendship and accelerate co-operation between Việt Nam and other countries in the fields of politics, economy, trade, investment, science and technology.
Upon arriving at Nội Bài International Airport, Huệ witnessed the handover ceremony of aid from organisations and individuals to the Vietnamese Ministry of Health and the Việt Nam Fatherland Front.
The aid package included 200,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from Belgium and Slovakia and medical equipment (including ventilators, patient monitors, and COVID-19 test kits) worth more than VNĐ1 trillion.
Also in the trip, a number of contracts related to test kit production, COVID-19 vaccine research and production were signed by Vietnamese enterprises and foreign partners.
Specifically, T&T Group signed a contract with a German partner to transfer the Testkit PCR production technology worth 80 million euros ($94.4 million), with a Spanish partner, a contract to co-operate in clinical trials and vaccine production for 50 million doses, worth 375 million euros ($442.9 million).
Vingroup and Xenothera SAS Company signed a co-operation agreement to conduct a phase three clinical trial in Việt Nam of Xenothera's anti-COVID treatment, called XAV-19, to supply XAV-19 products and transfer technology to produce XAV-19 products in Việt Nam.
Huệ’s working delegation handed over 200,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine to the Ministry of Health, including 100,000 doses of vaccine donated by the Belgian Government and 100,000 doses of vaccine donated by the Government of Slovakia, medical equipment and supplies worth VNĐ1.028 trillion ($45 million) including over four million rapid test kits, 650 ventilators, 500 patient monitors and five PCR testing machines.
The delegation handed over to the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front VNĐ230 million ($10,000) from the Vietnamese community in the Czech Republic donated to HCM City and VNĐ135 million ($5,900) from the Vietnamese community in Austria donated for Việt Nam’s fund for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.
The remaining amount of medical equipment and supplies will be shipped to Việt Nam by air as soon as possible.
The national airline Vietnam Airlines has transported the goods to the country by a special aircraft Boeing 787-9, one of the largest aircraft in Việt Nam today, meeting the urgent needs of the Vietnamese health system in protecting people’s lives and health.
Việt Nam-Finland Business Roundtable
Việt Nam wants to learn from Finland’s experience to develop fast and sustainably, National Assembly Chairman Vương Đình Huệ told the Việt Nam – Finland Business Roundtable in Helsinki on Saturday.
He stressed that Việt Nam attached great importance to developing a green, circular and low-carbon economy, cutting greenhouse gas emissions and accelerating start-ups and innovation, while Finland has an economy based on cutting-edge technology and boasts one of the world’s most complete innovation ecosystems along with strong start-up trends. Therefore, Việt Nam wanted to explore Finland’s experience and forge cooperation between businesses in those fields.
The Southeast Asian country was pursuing robust, sustainable and harmonious development in terms of economics, social affairs, environment and adaption to climate change in the future, he added.
Noting that Việt Nam is a signatory to 17 bilateral and multilateral free trade agreements, including the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), Huệ called on investors from Finland and the EU to do business in Việt Nam.
The roundtable saw the presence of Finnish Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Ville Skinnari, who said he hoped Finnish enterprises could provide help for Việt Nam in digital transformation, a critical factor for an economy to maintain sustainable growth.
He also announced that Finland has agreed to provide extra support for projects using soft foreign loans.
Also on Saturday, the NA Chairman hosted a reception for young Vietnamese business people in Finland.
The young entrepreneurs expressed their wish to bring modern technology to Việt Nam, particularly those for coping with climate change in the Mekong Delta.
Chairman Huệ appreciated their dreams, and stressed that the Vietnamese Party and State treasured the contingent of young intellectuals and businesspeople both inside and outside the country. He said they were a precious resource for national development, and affirmed that the NA, Government and ministries and sectors in Việt Nam were willing to support and create the most favourable conditions for them to operate in the country. — VNS