According to Vice President of the Vietnam - China Friendship Association Nguyen Vinh Quang, this visit to Vietnam by General Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping (December 12-13) at the invitation of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and President Vo Van Thuong is a diplomatic response to the visit last year by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, continuing to promote relations between the two countries.

General Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping presented the Friendship Medal to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong during his visit to China from October 30 to November 1, 2022. (Source: VNA)

The third time President Xi Jinping visited Vietnam In 2022, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's visit was very successful with a 13-point Joint Statement, widely reported by the media, both countries and the world. The agreements reached between the two General Secretaries last year have been actively implemented and are achieving good results. This visit is special in that it is the first time a General Secretary and President of China has visited Vietnam three times. Therefore, there are many expectations that the visit will achieve good results, bringing benefits to the people of the two countries, promoting bilateral relations to a new level with new agreements or more specific implementation of existing agreements into reality. A rare year 2023 is the year that Vietnam-China relations have developed smoothly. After the Covid-19 pandemic, exchange activities and delegation exchanges were restored, starting with the visit to China by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. The visit was of great significance, one could say historic, opening a new phase for the relationship between the two countries and resolving a number of difficult issues between the two countries. After that visit, many high-ranking leaders, ministries, and localities of the two countries had contact and interacted with each other. On the Vietnamese side, it is worth mentioning that President Vo Van Thuong attended the 3rd Belt and Road Summit in Beijing (October); Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visited China, attended the World Economic Forum in Tianjin (June), and recently attended the China-ASEAN Expo and the China-ASEAN Trade and Investment Summit in Guangxi (September); or the visit of Standing Secretary of the Secretariat Truong Thi Mai (April)... On the Chinese side, Director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China, Foreign Minister Wang Yi came to Vietnam to co-chair the meeting of the Steering Committee for Vietnam-China Bilateral Cooperation; Vice Chairman of the CPPCC Wang Yong visited Vietnam; visits by the Secretaries of the Hainan and Yunnan Provincial Party Committees, the Guangxi Regional Party Committees, etc. According to experts, such a short period of time with so many exchanges, meetings, and contacts is rare. Because both sides have recognized the significance of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's visit, and recognized that the relationship between the two countries is at its most favorable stage of development. Not only politics and diplomacy but also economics, trade, and people-to-people exchanges have been strengthened and promoted. This visit by General Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping coincides with the occasion of the two countries celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Comprehensive Strategic Cooperative Partnership (2008-2023). The Comprehensive Strategic Cooperative Partnership is the highest diplomatic framework between Vietnam and countries in the world. China is the first country with which Vietnam has built a Comprehensive Strategic Cooperative Partnership. Vietnam is also the first Southeast Asian country with which China has established this framework.

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang and Foreign Minister Wang Yi co-chaired the 15th meeting of the Vietnam-China Steering Committee for Bilateral Cooperation on December 1 in Hanoi. (Source: VNA)

The potential for cooperation is still very large. According to Mr. Nguyen Vinh Quang, in general, the relationship between the two countries in 2023 is favorable and has many bright spots, and he hopes that the relationship between the two countries will be better in the future. However, he said that it must also be recognized that there are still outstanding issues between the two countries that need to find specific solutions to gradually resolve. Those issues have been mentioned and discussed seriously by senior leaders, and mechanisms to resolve those issues have also been resumed after the pandemic. In the Joint Statement on the occasion of the official visit of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong (November 2022) and in the Joint Press Release on the occasion of the official visit of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh to China (June 2023), both sides affirmed that they "agreed to actively promote the connection of development strategies between the two countries". Mr. Nguyen Vinh Quang said that connecting development strategies is a trend in the world, especially when Vietnam and China are two neighboring countries with many similarities, so connecting is necessary. The development potential between Vietnam and China is still very large, in which people-to-people and cultural exchanges are bright spots and strengths in the relationship between the two countries. A Chinese expert said: "As someone who has worked in people's diplomacy for many years, I think it is very good to promote this factor. Because enhancing mutual understanding between the people of the two countries is the foundation and basis of the Vietnam-China friendship. If we talk about friendship but the people do not have exchanges and understanding, then that friendship is not real and may not be genuine." In terms of economy, despite being affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, trade between the two countries has remained relatively good, especially after China opened up. Currently, China is Vietnam's largest trading partner and Vietnam is China's largest trading partner in ASEAN. According to Mr. Nguyen Vinh Quang, the most encouraging thing is that the trade balance gap between Vietnam and China is gradually narrowing. In fact, many Vietnamese goods are increasingly popular with the Chinese, such as agricultural products, seafood, etc. There are even agricultural products that the Chinese have recently found attractive, such as durian. Therefore, the two countries still have a lot of room for cooperation. Vietnam is an agricultural country, with hard-working farmers producing many products, and China is a very large market. On the other hand, China is like "a world factory" that can provide Vietnam with many things that the market needs.

PV