Ties with Indonesia stronger
Ties with Indonesia stronger
Participants at the sixth meeting of the Viet Nam-Indonesia Joint Commission on Economic, Scientific and Technological Cooperation held in Jakarta, Indonesia, this week, agreed to strengthen economic and technology co-operation for mutual benefits and towards a strategical partnership.
At the two-day event, the two sides discussed exchange activities in the fields of trade, industry, agriculture, energy, health, eduation, transport, finance, banking and tourism.
Viet Nam's Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang and Indonesian Minister of Trade Giata Irawan Wirjawan co-chaired the meeting, in which they agreed to work further on the draft of an MoU on information sharing and protective trade policies between the two countries.
The two sides also pledged to support each other at international and regional forum such as APEC, ASEAN, and the WTO.
The two ministers signed a protocol to amend the Memorandum of Understanding on rice trading between Viet Nam and Indonesia.
In the document, Viet Nam had agreed to sell up to 1.5 million tonnes of white rice to Indonesia each year from the start of 2013 to the end of 2017.
Regarding energy, oil and gas and coal mining, Viet Nam proposed that Indonesia facilitate PetroVietnam's existing oil and gas exploitation projects with its Indonesian partners, including the Natuna D-Alpha project.
Both sides encouraged PetroVietnam to increase cooperation in exploiting crude oil, gas and coal as well as providing oil and gas services in Indonesia.
On investment, both sides encouraged cooperation in investment promotion through sharing information on foreign investment policy and environment, and planned to exchange delegations to grasp investment opportunities in both countries and train foreign investment management staff.
The Indonesian side welcomed the involvement of Vietnamese importers and investors in the mining sector in Indonesia and proposed that the nation supply thermal coal to Viet Nam's power plants and import high-carbon anthracite coal from Viet Nam.
In terms of fisheries, both sides reaffirmed the importance of fishing cooperation in each country's economic growth, and encouraged bilateral cooperation between the two countries and among localities in the field.
As for agriculture, they agreed to speed up the signing of an MoU between Indonesia's Ministry of Agriculture and Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to lay foundations for co-operation in food diversification and reserves.
Two-way trade between Viet Nam and Indonesia increased from US$2.1 billion in 2009 to $4.7 billion in 2011 and reached $2.57 billion in the first seven months of 2012
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