Joint communiqué on official visit to the Russian Federation of Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam
1. At the invitation of Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev of the Russian Federation, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam paid an official visit to the Russian Federation from May 12 to 15, 2013.
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam was received by President Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation, held talks with Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev of the Russian Federation in narrow and extended formats, and met with Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Sergei Naryshkin. Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam laid flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the Ho Chi Minh Monument, met with Russian veterans, specialists who had worked in Vietnam and activists of the Russian-Vietnamese Friendship Society. He also visited the Kaliningrad Region.
During their meetings and talks, the Sides informed one another about the situation in both countries, and discussed further ways of promoting the comprehensive strategic cooperation between the Russian Federation and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in the interests of further strengthening the relationship of political trust, intensifying trade and investment cooperation, and cooperating in the fields of defence and security, science and technology, and education and staff training. The Sides also exchanged views on issues on the global and regional agendas of mutual interest.
2. The Sides confirmed that attaining the level of comprehensive strategic partnership in the relationship between Russia and Vietnam had provided a powerful impetus to the development of cooperation at a new historical stage. The governments of both countries will closely coordinate their actions and orient their ministries, agencies and regional authorities towards the comprehensive and active promotion of cooperation in all areas.
The Russian Side had high praise for the successes achieved by the SRV in its socioeconomic development, something that is contributing to the consistent improvement of its role and prestige in the region and the world as a whole, and expressed its active support for Vietnam’s course of economic restructuring, upgrading of its growth model and intensification of international integration.
The Vietnamese Side welcomed the Russian Federation’s achievements in its large-scale modernisation and its important contribution to global security, cooperation and prosperity.
The two Sides called for the intensification of political dialogue and the further strengthening of interstate, intergovernmental, interparliamentary, interagency, interregional and interparty ties and humanitarian exchanges.
3. The Sides agreed to adopt additional measures to increase bilateral trade to $7 billion by 2015 and to $10 billion by 2020, and welcomed the beginning of talks between member states of the Customs Union (Russian Federation, Republic of Belarus, Republic of Kazakhstan) and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on signing a free-trade zone agreement and the positive results of the first round of the talks. The heads of government agreed to work towards drafting a comprehensive free-trade document embracing the areas of trade, investment, services, and other areas of mutual interest, on the basis of a flexible approach taking account of the development goals and balance of interests in conformity with generally accepted international practices and WTO rules.
4. The Sides note the beginning of the work of the high-level Russian-Vietnamese Working Group for Priority Investment Projects, designed to tap the considerable potential of reciprocal investment cooperation. The necessary government support will be provided for coordinated investment cooperation projects.
5. The Sides welcome cooperation between them in the field of nuclear power and stressed the high importance of construction in Vietnam of its first nuclear power plant. The Russian Side will build the nuclear power plant in Vietnam in strict conformity with the agreed schedule and on the basis of advanced technologies to assure security, quality and maximum efficiency. The Sides have agreed to speed up negotiations and arrive at the signing of an intergovernmental agreement on the terms of funding for a project involving the construction of a Centre of Nuclear Science and Technology in Vietnam.
6. The Sides highly praised the results of operations by both countries’ joint ventures and companies involved in the production of oil and gas. The heads of government agreed that they would continue promoting the activities of the two countries’ companies Gazprom, Zarubezhneft, Rosneft, LUKOIL Overseas and Petrovietnam as well as their subsidiaries and joint ventures Vietsovpetro, Rusvietpetro, Gazpromviet and Vietgazprom, and encouraging the establishment of new joint companies with the purpose of expanding oil and gas exploration and production areas in Vietnam, Russia and third countries. They confirmed their desire to further strengthen cooperation in oil and gas exploration and production on Vietnam’s continental shelf in strict conformity with international law, primarily the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
7. The Sides stated their general desire to step up cooperation in the field of defence and security in the spirit of agreements reached by senior leaders of the two countries.
8. The Sides pointed out that there was considerable potential for cooperation in areas such as mining, civil aviation, transport, telecommunications and communications.
9. The Sides emphasised the fact that it was expedient to more actively engage the Joint Vietnamese-Russian Bank in the financial servicing of major joint projects and to expand the practice of using the national currencies of Russia and Vietnam in bilateral settlements with regard to foreign economic operations.
10. The Sides confirmed their intention to intensify cooperation in the area of science and technology, education and staff training, and to bring this cooperation to a strategic level. An agreement was reached on creating the conditions and mechanisms for conducting scientific research and transferring technologies within the framework of joint programmes and projects by the relevant organisations of the two countries. The intention was expressed to step up efforts to establish a Vietnamese-Russian Technological University in Hanoi on the basis of Russian state credit, including for the purpose of training highly-skilled staff for Vietnam, and to support the operation and increase the efficiency of the Joint Russian-Vietnamese Tropical Research and Technological Centre.
11. The Sides believe that the intensification of ties in the humanitarian area, including expanding cooperation in the fields of tourism, culture and contacts between people, is laying the firm foundation for further development of relations of traditional friendship and cooperation between Russia and Vietnam. The governments of both countries will create favourable conditions for the successful holding of events designed to promote reciprocal familiarisation with the Sides’ culture and tourist potential in the territory of both states.
12. The Sides intend to promote effective practical cooperation between regions of the Russian Federation and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, including assistance to businesses of the two countries in looking for favourable investment opportunities under the applicable legislation of either Side.
13. The Sides support the efforts of the two countries’ chambers of commerce and industry to help representatives of business circles in establishing and expanding direct contacts, organising exhibitions and fairs, studying each other’s markets and initiating effective cooperation in the field of trade and investment.
14. The Sides noted the important contribution made by citizens of the Russian Federation residing in Vietnam and citizens of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam residing in Russia to the strengthening of relations of traditional friendship and cooperation between the two countries. They expressed their readiness to continue ensuring favourable conditions for their life, work and education in the territories of Russia and Vietnam in keeping with the legislations of the Russian Federation and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
15. The Sides confirmed their firm intention to implement the top-level agreements reached by President Vladimir Putin and President Truong Tan Sang and outlined in the July 2012 Joint Statement on the Strengthening of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the Russian Federation and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam with regard to issues of foreign policy and coordination of actions in the international arena in the interests of peace, stability and prosperity in the Asia Pacific Region and the world.
16. The Sides agreed to give active support to each other’s candidacies at elections to the agencies of the United Nations and to other international organisations, including the EXPO-2020 World Universal Exhibition.
17. The visit of the Prime Minister of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam resulted in the signing of the Plan of Cooperation in the Area of Tourism between the Federal Agency for Tourism (Russian Federation) and the Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam for 2013 – 2015, the Programme of Cooperation between the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Justice of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam for 2013 – 2014, and a number of contracts between companies on cooperation in the oil and gas sector, in the military-technical and banking spheres and in railway infrastructure.
18. Both Sides agreed that the official visit paid by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to the Russian Federation made an important contribution to promoting the comprehensive strategic partnership between Russia and Vietnam.
The Prime Minister of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam expressed his gratitude to the Russian Side for the cordial reception extended to him and invited Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev of the Russian Federation to visit the Socialist Republic of Vietnam at a convenient time. The invitation was accepted with gratitude. The timeframe for the visit will be coordinated through diplomatic channels.
Moscow, May 15, 2013