Vietnam, Indonesia set sights on US$15 billion trade turnover target
VOV.VN - Vietnam and Indonesia will strive to elevate their bilateral trade turnover to US$15 billion or beyond in the time ahead through reducing trade barriers and facilitating import and export of each other's key products, including rice trade.
The consensus was reached by Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong and his Indonesian counterpart Joko Widodo during their talks held immediately after a welcome ceremony for the latter in Hanoi on January 12.
The Vietnamese State leader warmly welcomed President Joko Widodo's state visit to Vietnam, and emphasized that the nation always values and wishes to further strengthen the traditional relationship and strategic Partnership with Indonesia on the basis of historical traditions, similar values and interests, mutual trust and understanding as well as general commitments to international law.
Thuong glowingly spoke of Indonesia's tremendous achievements under the leadership of President Joko Widodo during the past two terms, while congratulating Indonesia on successfully fulfilling the role of G20 presidency in 2022 and ASEAN and the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) chairmanship in 2023.
He also wished Indonesia to successfully hold the upcoming general election, and continue to grow steadily, thus contributing to peace and cooperation in the region and the wider world.
President Joko Widodo showed his elation at his second Vietnam visit in his presidential capacity, congratulating Vietnam on its outstanding socio-economic development achievements. He appreciated the substantive exchanges with Vietnamese leaders, and thanked Vietnam for supporting his nation during the time Indonesia served as ASEAN Chair 2023.
The Indonesian President affirmed that he greatly values and desires to further foster traditional friendship and cooperation with Vietnam - Indonesia's only strategic partner in ASEAN.
The two leaders expressed their satisfaction with the strong and dynamic developments of the Vietnam-Indonesia strategic partnership alongside the regular exchange of delegations and meetings at all levels, notably the phone call between General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and President Joko Widodo in August 2022 and the well implemented strategic partnership action program for the 2019-2023 period.
In addition, due attention has been given to boosting cooperation in important fields such as national security and defence, education and training, culture and tourism, local connections, and people-to-people exchanges.
In ASEAN, Indonesia is Vietnam's 3rd biggest trading partner and Vietnam is Indonesia's 4th largest trading partner. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, bilateral trade turnover continued to grow steadily from US$9 billion in 2019 to nearly US$14 billion in 2023.
With regard to a number of major cooperation directions in the coming time, the two sides concurred to further consolidate political trust by intensifying delegation exchanges, high-level contacts at all levels, effectively carrying out bilateral cooperation mechanisms and soon devising an action program for the 2024 – 2028 period suitable to the new context.
Both leaders agreed to enhance links in other important fields such as defence-security, and maritime cooperation, and exchange experience in preventing transnational crime without allowing any individual or organization to use the territory of one country to sabotage another one.
The two sides concurred to augment effective cooperation in agriculture and fisheries, information - communication, education - training, culture, sports, tourism, open more direct flights to connect localities, businesses and strengthen people-to-people exchanges.
They will expand cooperation in new and potential fields such as smart finance, energy transition, digital transformation, innovation, and development of electric vehicle and electric battery ecosystems.
President Thuong asked Indonesia to create favorable conditions for Vietnamese agricultural and Halal products to access the Indonesian market, while encouraging Indonesian businesses to expand investment in the southeast Asian nation.
More and more Indonesian businesses are interested in investing in Vietnam, the Indonesian leader said and voicing his hope that Vietnamese businesses will expand their investment in Indonesia.
The Vietnamese State leader thanked and hoped that the Indonesian Government would continue to pay attention and offer optimal conditions for the Vietnamese community in Indonesia to live stably, successfully integrate into the host country as a contribution to bilateral ties.
He proposed that the two sides continue to cooperate in combating illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
Regarding regional and international issues of mutual concern, host and guest consented to continue to strengthen consultation, close coordination and mutual support at regional and international forums, reinforce solidarity and the central role of ASEAN, and coordinate with ASEAN member states to support Laos in successfully assuming the role of ASEAN Chair 2024.
The two leaders reaffirmed the importance of ensuring peace, stability, safety, security and freedom of navigation and aviation in the East Sea, and working together to maintain ASEAN's solidarity and common stance on the East Sea issue.
They underlined the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), and efforts to accelerate negotiations to achieve a substantive and effective Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) in accordance with international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
After the talks, the two leaders witnessed the exchange of two cooperation documents, including a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on information and communications technology cooperation and a MoU on fisheries cooperation.
