MANILA, Jan 29 (NNN-PNA) – Philippine President, Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos, left for Vietnam today for a two-day state visit, to boost cooperation.
“Maritime cooperation will be one of the cornerstones of the strategic partnership, which we are going to forge, and we hope to strengthen this aspect during my visit, to promote peace and stability in our region,” Marcos said in his departure speech.
He added that, he will also discuss with his counterpart, Vietnamese President, Vo Van Thuong, cooperation in trade and investments, education, and tourism, as well as, regional and multilateral issues of mutual concern.
Calling the state visit to bring relations between the Philippines and Vietnam to “greater heights,” Marcos is also scheduled to meet Vietnamese Prime Minister, Pham Minh Chinh and Chairman of the National Assembly, Vuong Dinh Hue.
The Philippines and Vietnam aim to boost bilateral trade by up to 10 billion U.S. dollars, in the coming years. Vietnam is the Philippines’ sole strategic partner in the ASEAN region, with ties spanning almost 50 years since establishing bilateral relations in 1976.
Vietnam is home to around 7,000 Filipino workers.– NNN-PNA
