President: Ties with Vietnam grow stronger

Vietnamese commuters scan their passports at the border port in Dongxing, a border city in South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region which is separated from Vietnam's Mong Cai by a narrow river. (Photo by Zhou Hua/Xinhua)

Robust bilateral relations highlight advantages of socialist system, he says

President Xi Jinping said on Monday that China and Vietnam should appropriately manage and control their maritime disputes, oppose the stirring up of trouble by external forces, and promote regional peace, stability and development.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remark in a phone conversation with Nguyen Phu Trong, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and president of Vietnam.

In the phone call, Xi said that practical cooperation between China and Vietnam in various areas has increased despite the COVID-19 pandemic, which embodied the outstanding advantages of leadership by the Communist Party and the socialist system.

It also showed the great vitality in relations between the two parties and two countries, he said.

As a community of a shared future with strategic significance, Xi said that the sustainable, sound and steady development of China-Vietnam relations is in line with the fundamental interests of the two parties, two countries and their peoples.

The bilateral relationship now stands at a new historical point as this year marks the CPC's 100th founding anniversary, the first year of China's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period and the first year of implementing the spirit of the 13th CPV National Congress, Xi said.

China stands ready to work with Vietnam to strengthen strategic communication, enhance political mutual trust and maintain high-level guidance and close communications between the two parties so that bilateral ties can achieve steady and lasting growth, he said.

Xi said that China is willing to accelerate the alignment of the Belt and Road Initiative with Vietnam's Two Corridors and One Economic Circle plan, promote the construction of bilateral cross-border economic cooperation zones, and explore exchanges and cooperation in areas such as health, the digital economy and people-to-people exchanges.

He called on the two sides to increase coordination in international and regional affairs, firmly safeguard the international system with the United Nations at the core, oppose protectionism and unilateralism and bring the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership into effect as early as possible.

In January, Xi sent a message to Trong congratulating him on his election to a third term as the general secretary of the CPV Central Committee.

In the phone conversation on Monday, Xi expressed his congratulations again, saying that he believed the newly elected CPV Central Committee and the Vietnamese people, led by Trong, will strive to realize the party's and Vietnam's development goals.

Trong thanked Xi for his congratulations, saying that developing and enhancing the traditional friendship with China is always the top priority of the CPV and Vietnam.

He said that the Vietnamese side spoke highly of the progress that China has made in pandemic prevention and control, as well as economic recovery.

The Vietnamese side is willing to deepen political mutual trust with China, strengthen party-to-party exchanges and speed up the implementation of agreements on bilateral practical cooperation, Trong added.

Xi and Trong also exchanged greetings for the Lunar New Year and wished happiness to the peoples of both countries.

Reporting by Mo Jingxi (China Daily); editing by Wang Jingzhong