vietnam malaisie 10 03 02
VIET NAM, MALAYSIA TO RAISE
TRADE VALUE TO USD 1.5 BILLION BY 2005
Kuala Lumpur, Mar. 9 (VNA) -- Viet Nam
and Malaysia have agreed to set up a Trade Committee and to form a goods
exchange mechanism in order to raise the two-way trade value between the two
countries to USD 1.5 billion in 2005.
The agreement was reached at the 3rd session in Kuala Lumpur from
March 7-9 of the Viet Nam-Malaysia Joint Committee for Economic, Scientific, and
Technical Cooperation.
Vietnamese Foreign Minister Nguyen Dy Nien and his Malaysian
counterpart, Syed Hamid Albar co-chaired the session.
They also agreed to encourage and facilitate the implementation of
already signed cooperation projects in petro-chemistry and fuel gas production.
At the session, the two sides reviewed the two countries'
cooperation since the previous session in 1996. They were delighted at the
strong development of the multifaceted cooperation between the two countries,
particularly after President Tran Duc Luong's Malaysia visit in March 1998. They
were also pleased at the promotion of contacts and exchanges between ministries
and services of the two sides, which they said had helped and would continue to
help boost the two countries' cooperation in many fields.
They noted with pleasure that in the past five years annual two-way
trade value had increased 10 percent to between USD 700 and 800 million a year.
Viet Nam described Malaysia as a major and stable market for its agricultural
producers.
The two delegations to the session were satisfied at the positive
steps of development in their cooperation in science, tourism, culture,
information, education and training, sports, posts and telecommunications. Viet
Nam highly valued Malaysia's assistance to Viet Nam in personnel training and
human resource development.
With the hope of further promoting view exchanges and consultation
between the two foreign ministries on issues of mutual concern, the two sides
agreed to establish a mechanism for regular consultation between the two foreign
ministries. They walso agreed that the two governments should sign an agreement
on labour cooperation as soon as possible.
In addition to this, the two sides exchanged views on international
and regional issues.
They debated orientations and concrete measures to make the two
countries' cooperation more effective and commensurate with the potentials of
both. They were of the same view that they would expand cooperation in trade,
investment, agriculture, labour, fisheries, science and technology, education
and training, finance and banking, and foreign affairs.
The fourth session of the Joint Committee will be held in Ha Noi in
2003.--VNA