(13th Congress) - New Indonesian Ambassador to Vietnam Denny Abdi said that Vietnam and Indonesia are important partners of each other in the region and in the world, adding that the two countries have much potential and opportunities for promoting economic and trade cooperation.
Rice is one of main products that Indonesia imports from Vietnam. (Photo: VNA)
He made the statement on March 8 while being received by Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh.
Appreciating Vietnam’s role in the Southeast Asian region, the Indonesian Ambassador noted that amid the difficult circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, Vietnam is the only Southeast Asian country with positive growth.
He noted that in his working term, he would focus on promoting economic cooperation between the two countries.
Confirming that Indonesia is one of Vietnam’s important partners, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh said that over the past time, Indonesia had cooperated closely with Vietnam both bilaterally and multilaterally, at forums and cooperation frameworks like ASEAN, WTO and RCEP.
The Deputy Minister thanked Indonesia for its support and active coordination in 2020, contributing to the very successful results of the RCEP process as ASEAN and its partner countries signed the RCEP Agreement in the year Vietnam presided over ASEAN, also the year that ASEAN countries as well as the world faced many difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Regarding bilateral trade, the two sides noted the results achieved in the bilateral trade exchange. Since the two countries established a strategic partnership in 2013, bilateral trade turnover increased from approximately USD5 billion to more than USD9 billion in 2019. In 2020, there is a decline due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Deputy Minister Tran Quoc Khanh said that in 2021 and the following years, bilateral trade will regain growth momentum, return to a "new normal" state and develop more strongly.
Ambassador Denny Abdi said that he would work closely with the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam to carefully study the potentials and opportunities for cooperation, as well as existing issues in economic and trade cooperation between the two countries. The Ambassador affirmed that he would promote exchange, dialogue and cooperation between the two sides to resolve outstanding issues./.
Compiled by BTA