His Excellency, Mr. Tran Dai Quang, President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,
Distinguished Delegates,
Members of the Media,
Xin Chao..!! Namaskar..!!
First of all I heartily congratulate all the Vietnamese guests present here and the people of Vietnam for their new year Tet on behalf of entire country.
It is a matter of great happiness for me that today I have had the privilege of welcoming India’s close friend and President of Vietnam Mr. Tran Dai Quang Ji.
Vietnam has an important role in our framework of Act East Policy and in our cooperation with ASEAN.
This year in January, we had the privilege of welcoming the Prime Minister of Vietnam with the other nine ASEAN leaders on the occasion of the ASEAN India Commemorative Summit.
And now this visit of the President of Vietnam to India gives a clear indication of the commitment of the two countries to further strengthen our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
For several years, the President of Vietnam himself has taken personal interest and played an extremely important role in strengthening the India-Vietnam relations.
Excellency, we are grateful to you for this.
Friends,
Both India and Vietnam have fought a battle against the colonialism. We are the inheritors of the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi and Ho Chi Minh.
During my visit to Vietnam in 2016, we gave our bilateral relationship the status of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
And last year we celebrated the 45th anniversary of our diplomatic relations, and the 10th anniversary of our strategic partnership.
However our relations are not confined to the relationship between the two governments. Our civilizational relations are 2,000 years old.
Our cultural linkages are not just historical in nature, but they are a living heritage.
Mister President, you yourself must have experiencedthis thing firsthand in Bodh Gaya yesterday.
Friends,
In our today’s meeting we have thoroughly discussed all the aspects of our relations in great detail.
Both of us are developing countries and have been benefiting from each other's experiences.
It is our good fortune that thousands of Vietnamese people have received their education and training in technical and other subjects in India.
I express my gratitude to the President and the leadership of Vietnam for having this faith and trust in India.
Our trade and investment relations are strong. Our trade has been rising continuously even during the period of global recession.
In the last 5 years, our bilateral trade has increased from $6 billion to more than $10 billion.
In our discussions today, we agreed to strengthen our trade and investment relations in many sectors. These include sectors like renewable energy, agriculture and agro-products, textiles, and oil and gas.
We will not only strengthen our long-standing bilateral relations in the oil and gas sector, but we will also work with other countries on the possibilities of trilateral partnerships.
I am hopeful that the Vietnam’s business delegation accompanying the President during India visit will be thoroughly familiarized with the opportunities for taking advantage from India’s development.
Friends,
Defence and security cooperation is one of the pillars of our strong relations. There is already a deep cooperation among all the branches of our military, today, we have also decided that we will increase our cooperation in the field of defense production.
We will also explore the possibilities of co-production and transfer of technology in the defense sector.
Together we will work for an independent, open and prosperous Indo-Pacific region, where sovereignty and international law are respected, and where differences are resolved through dialogue.
We are both fully committed to an open, transparent, inclusive and rules-based regional architecture to enhance our maritime relations.
Friends,
It is a matter of satisfaction that the relations of our ancient civilizations are still alive today.
This is reflected in our growing cultural, tourism and people-to-people links.
It is a matter of great pride for us that Archaeological Survey of India has contributed in the preservation and renovation of UNESCO World Heritage Site MỹSơn in Vietnam.
We are grateful for Vietnam’s invaluable support in declaration of Ahmedabad in my home state Gujarat as UNESCO’s world heritage city last year.
Friends,
In the last few years, a new momentum andnew energy is visible in India-Vietnam relations.
Our relationship is important not only for the welfare and happiness of our two countries, but also for maintaining peace, security and balance in the entire region. I am totally confident that this visit of the President of Vietnam to India will success in providing further strength to our relations.
Once again, I warmly welcomethe President, and the delegation of Vietnam in India.
Thank you.
