Vietnam-Cyprus relations still have much room for development

Deputy Foreign Minister Le Thi Thu Hang affirmed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is always ready to closely coordinate to create breakthroughs and new momentum for cooperation between Vietnam and Cyprus.

Deputy Foreign Minister Le Thi Thu Hang works with Permanent Deputy Minister of the President of Cyprus Irene Piki. (Photo: Bao Chi)

On September 8, within the framework of a working trip to Cyprus, Deputy Foreign Minister Le Thi Thu Hang had a working session with Permanent Deputy Minister of the President of Cyprus Irene Piki.

The two sides highly appreciated the significance of the visit, which is the first delegation exchange between the two countries in the past 10 years, taking place in the context of Vietnam-Cyprus celebrating the 50th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations and the bilateral relationship is showing many improvements.

Expressing her gratitude for the warm welcome and being impressed by the beautiful landscape and dynamic development of the island nation of Cyprus, which has become the country with the highest GDP growth in the EU, Deputy Minister Le Thi Thu Hang highly appreciated the important achievements that Cyprus has achieved in implementing the Vision 2035 strategy, especially in the fields of science and technology, financial technology, innovation, digital transformation, maritime, etc.

In order to promote and further expand bilateral cooperation, based on the needs and strengths of the two countries, Deputy Minister Le Thi Thu Hang proposed to increase the exchange of delegations at all levels and channels, especially visits by high-ranking leaders; affirming that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is always ready to closely coordinate to create breakthroughs and new impetus for cooperation between the two countries.

Congratulating Vietnam on the 80th anniversary of the August Revolution and National Day September 2, Deputy Minister Irene Piki expressed her admiration for Vietnam's past struggle for national liberation as well as its current construction and development; and shared Cyprus' current achievements in socio-economic development.

Assessing the close friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and Cyprus, Deputy Minister Irene Piki affirmed that the two countries still have much room for cooperation, especially in the field of economic cooperation; proposed that the two sides strengthen cooperation in the fields of science, technology and innovation, financial technology, pharmaceuticals, education, etc.

Deputy Minister Irene Piki agreed that the two sides should coordinate to promote the signing of cooperation documents such as the Memorandum of Understanding on political consultation between the two Foreign Ministries, the Agreement on Avoidance of Double Taxation, the Memorandum of Understanding on labor cooperation, especially highly skilled labor, and coordinate the organization of economic activities such as Business Forums and seminars during visits by senior leaders of the two countries.

Expressing their delight at the growth in trade turnover over the past year, the two sides agreed to continue to effectively exploit incentives from the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), creating more favorable conditions for goods from Vietnam and Cyprus to access each other's markets; urging EU countries to soon ratify the Vietnam-EU Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), thereby helping to increase investment attraction between Vietnam and the EU in general and with Cyprus in particular; continuing to support Vietnam in requesting the European Commission (EC) to soon remove the "yellow card" for Vietnamese seafood.

The two Deputy Ministers exchanged views on a number of regional and international issues of mutual concern, agreeing to continue close coordination and mutual support at international forums, especially at the United Nations, ASEAN and the EU.

Regarding the East Sea issue, the two sides agreed on the importance of the East Sea in international maritime traffic; affirmed support for the stance of Vietnam and ASEAN on resolving disputes by peaceful means on the basis of compliance with international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), contributing to maintaining peace, stability, security, safety, freedom of aviation and navigation in the region.

Deputy Minister Le Thi Thu Hang works with Cyprus Minister of Labor and Social Security Yiannis Panayiotou. (Photo: Bao Chi)

On the same day, Deputy Minister Le Thi Thu Hang had a working session with Cyprus Minister of Labor and Social Security Yiannis Panayiotou.

Deputy Minister Le Thi Thu Hang thanked the Cyprus government for creating favorable conditions for more than 7,000 Vietnamese people here, expressing her joy at the community's integration and contribution to the socio-economic development of the host country. According to the Deputy Minister, with high adaptability, diligence and ingenuity, Vietnamese workers meet the requirements of the market, including Cyprus.

The Deputy Minister asked the Cyprus government to continue supporting the Vietnamese community to stabilize their lives, integrate into society, increase minimum income levels and ensure full enjoyment of social security policies and regimes.

Deputy Minister Le Thi Thu Hang emphasized that with high adaptability, diligence and dexterity, Vietnamese workers can meet the requirements of the labor markets of many countries, including Cyprus. (Photo: Bao Chi)

The Minister of Labor and Social Security highly appreciated the Vietnamese labor community in Cyprus, wishing to further promote the attraction of Vietnamese laborers to work in Cyprus, expanding to other fields such as services and health care; agreed to strengthen coordination in training high-quality human resources, serving the industrialization and modernization process in Vietnam as well as meeting the labor needs of Cyprus and Europe.

Affirming the role of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security in protecting the rights of workers in general, including Vietnamese workers, Minister Yiannis Panayiotou agreed to speed up negotiations and soon sign a Memorandum of Understanding on recruiting Vietnamese workers to work in Cyprus, creating an important legal framework for long-term cooperation.

Minister Yiannis Panayiotou suggested that the two sides coordinate to develop a specific plan to promote the signing as well as assign relevant units to carefully study the proposals of the Vietnamese side in supporting Vietnamese workers in Cyprus in terms of income and labor regime.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/quan-he-viet-nam-va-cyprus-con-nhieu-du-dia-de-phat-trien-327123.html