The Netherlands always wants to upgrade bilateral relations with Vietnam, said Dutch Ambassador to Vietnam Elsbeth Akkerman during a meeting with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in Hanoi on March 14.Ambassador Elsbeth Akkerman expected the two sides to take specific measures to further promote the bilateral relationship in the time ahead, Vietnam Television reported.
Elsbeth Akkerman noted that in recent years, the two countries have carried out effective cooperation and exchange activities in many fields, especially in the fields of water resources management, clean energy development, renewable energy.
The two countries’ governments and businesses also have increased comprehensive cooperation activities, opening up good prospects to promote the two sides’ cooperation in a practical and effective manner in the coming time, she added.
PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc congratulated Elsbeth Akkerman on her duties as Dutch Ambassador to Vietnam. Photo: Quang Hieu
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For his part, PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc stressed the two countries' common goal to upgrade bilateral ties to comprehensive partnership and establish a strategic partnership on climate change response.
Vietnam is one of the countries heavily affected by climate change and extreme weather. Many localities have suffered from severe inundations, droughts have hit Vietnam's South Central and Central Highlands more frequently. The number of strong storms tends to increase, sea level rises 3.1 mm per year, 40% of the Mekong Delta risks being flooded permanently.
PM Phuc also reaffirmed that the Netherlands is Vietnam’s important partner in Europe and Vietnam always attaches great importance to friendly relations and effective cooperation with that European country.
Phuc proposed that the two sides continue to set a strong growth target for trade and investment cooperation. He expected that the two countries’ relevant agencies will implement specific measures to further improve two-way trade, as potential remains large.
The Vietnamese government, localities and enterprises are keen to cooperate with Dutch businesses, especially in the fields that the Netherlands has advantages such as adaptation to climate change, clean energy development, water resource management, sustainable agriculture, food security. These are also key factors for Vietnam's development, the PM stressed.
