Opinion
Ambassador: Turin highlights Vietnam-Italy relations
The Office of Vietnam’s Honorary Consul in the Italian city of Turin held a gathering on the occasion of Vietnam’s traditional Lunar New Year.
Vietnam’s Honorary Consul in Turin, Sandra Scagliotti (first, right) made speech at the gathering
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At the event, Vietnamese Ambassador to Italy Cao Chinh Thien presented his country’s recent attainments, including those in external ties and social, economic and cultural development. He underlined the sound bilateral relations which have been affirmed and solidified during recent high-ranking visits, including a State visit to Italy by President Tran Dai Quang in November 2016. Those visits illustrate both sides’ political resolve to intensify the Vietnam-Italy strategic partnership. He expressed his belief that the countries will have more practical cooperation activities in the time ahead.
Regarding economic ties, Thien noted bilateral trade has risen sharply in rec.ent years, especially since the strategic partnership was set up in 2013, reaching 4.6 billion USD in 2016. Italy is the fifth biggest EU trade partner of Vietnam, which in turn is the largest partner of the European nation among ASEAN countries.
Turin is a big city in the northwest of Italy and also a mechanical and manufacturing hub of the country. It is also the only Italian city with an honorary consul office of Vietnam. They agreed to increase the exchange of high-ranking delegations and meetings between Vietnamese and Italian ministries, agencies and localities, while effectively deploying dialogue and cooperation mechanisms in politics, economy, defence and science-technology, along with action programmes on collaboration in culture, education and training.
The leaders emphasised the need to address disputes in the East Sea by peaceful measures on the basis of respecting international law and the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982, fully implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea, soon finalising a Code of Conduct in the East Sea, and ensuring freedom of navigation andaviation in the sea.
