Vietnam and Uzbekistan Strengthen Bilateral Ties During Official Talks in Tashkent
Tashkent, The Gulf Observer: Trần Thanh Mẫn, Chairman of the National Assembly of Vietnam, held high-level discussions with Tanzila Narbaeva, President of the Senate of Uzbekistan, on the afternoon of April 5, following an official welcome ceremony in Tashkent. The meeting marked an important milestone as it was the first visit by a Vietnamese NA Chairman to Uzbekistan since the two countries established diplomatic relations.
Narbaeva warmly welcomed Mẫn, emphasizing the significance of his visit and expressing optimism that it would pave the way for promising cooperation between the two countries. She described Vietnam as a rapidly developing nation and a close friend of Uzbekistan, noting the longstanding friendship between the two nations despite their geographical distance.
Chairman Mẫn reciprocated the warm welcome, expressing his pleasure in leading a high-ranking Vietnamese delegation to Uzbekistan. He conveyed the Vietnamese leadership’s appreciation for Uzbekistan’s impressive development and growing influence regionally and globally. Mẫn also expressed pride in participating in the 150th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU-150), hosted by Uzbekistan, which further solidifies the country’s international standing.
Mẫn took the opportunity to recall historic visits by Vietnamese leaders, including President Hồ Chí Minh in 1959 and Prime Minister Nguyễn Tấn Dũng in 2011, noting that these visits laid the foundation for the strong, time-tested friendship between Vietnam and Uzbekistan. He highlighted Vietnam’s ongoing economic transformation and shared ambitions to achieve further socio-political stability and prosperity, aiming for an upper-middle-income status by 2030 and a high-income nation by 2045.
Narbaeva expressed admiration for Vietnam’s remarkable achievements over nearly 40 years of renewal, crediting the country’s leadership for steering it toward economic success. She acknowledged the goals of Vietnamese leadership to elevate the living standards of its people and emphasized Uzbekistan’s alignment with similar reforms aimed at strengthening its socio-economic fabric.
The talks also included discussions on enhancing parliamentary cooperation, with both sides agreeing to establish Vietnam-Uzbekistan and Uzbekistan-Vietnam Friendship Parliamentary Groups. The leaders emphasized the importance of increasing exchanges at various levels, including parliamentary delegations, and strengthening collaboration in areas such as economic cooperation, trade, energy, agriculture, healthcare, education, tourism, and transport.
A key topic of the talks was economic cooperation, with both leaders noting the untapped potential in bilateral trade and investment. They agreed to focus on fostering business partnerships, enhancing cooperation in energy, oil, and gas, and promoting joint ventures in various sectors. They also discussed educational and cultural exchanges, including the introduction of direct flights between Khánh Hòa and Tashkent, set to begin in June 2024.
Further emphasizing the need for multilateral cooperation, Mẫn reaffirmed Vietnam’s role in ASEAN and pledged to support Uzbekistan in expanding ties with the ASEAN bloc. He also urged Uzbekistan to support ASEAN’s stance on peaceful dispute resolution in the South China Sea, in line with international law.
Narbaeva welcomed Mẫn’s proposal to focus on the well-being of the Vietnamese community in Uzbekistan, committing to support their integration and contributions to the country’s development. In a gesture of goodwill, Mẫn extended an invitation to Narbaeva to visit Vietnam, which she gladly accepted, confirming a future delegation visit.
Following the successful talks, the two leaders signed a Cooperation Agreement between the parliaments of Vietnam and Uzbekistan, marking a new chapter in the bilateral relationship between the two nations.
