BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 14. President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva met with Vice President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam Vo Thi Anh Xuan on October 14.
According to the Azerbaijani Presidential Press Service, the meeting focused on strengthening bilateral relations, expanding strategic cooperation and exploring new opportunities for partnership in various sectors.
President Ilham Aliyev thanked the Vietnamese vice president for attending the Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in Baku. He noted that the visit also provided an opportunity to discuss important issues on the bilateral agenda.
Recalling his visit to Vietnam and the visit of To Lam, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, to Azerbaijan, President Aliyev emphasized the importance of those exchanges and reaffirmed the strategic nature of relations between the two countries.
The Azerbaijani leader also expressed appreciation for Vietnam's support in extending Azerbaijan's CICA chairmanship.
Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan thanked President Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva for the reception and congratulated Azerbaijan on its achievements, successful CICA chairmanship and hosting of the summit.
She highlighted the historical foundations of bilateral relations and the significance of the Joint Statement on the establishment of a strategic partnership, adopted during To Lam's visit to Azerbaijan.
The officials recalled the historical visits of Vietnamese leader Ho Chi Minh to Azerbaijan, Heydar Aliyev to Vietnam during his time in the Soviet leadership, and President Ilham Aliyev to Vietnam.
The Vietnamese vice president expressed gratitude for Azerbaijan's historical contribution to Vietnam's development following its struggle for independence, particularly in restoring the energy sector and training qualified specialists. She also recalled that thousands of Vietnamese students had studied in Azerbaijan during the Soviet period.
The meeting addressed prospects for cooperation in trade, transportation and logistics, renewable energy, tourism, investment and the possible introduction of a visa-free travel regime.
Energy cooperation was also discussed, including the memorandum of understanding signed between Azerbaijan's state oil company SOCAR and PetroVietnam, as well as opportunities to expand their partnership.
Vo Thi Anh Xuan thanked the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, headed by First Vice President Mehriban Aliyeva, for its humanitarian and cultural projects in Vietnam. She also warmly recalled the visit of Leyla Aliyeva, vice president of the Foundation, to her country.
