Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Dec. 25 (VNA) -- President Tran Duc Luong today, Dec. 25, began an official visit to China with the aim of fostering its comprehensive cooperation with China.

The visit made at the invitation of Chinese President Jiang Zemin is also to translate the two countries' line of good neighbourliness, comprehensive cooperation, long-lasting stability and looking towards the future into concrete areas of cooperation and strengthen mutual trust, cooperation and friendship between the two countries in the 21st century.

President Luong is accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Cong Tan, Foreign Minister Nguyen Dy Nien, Director of the Presidential Office Nguyen Canh Dinh, Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Xuan Gia, Fisheries Minister Ta Quang Ngoc, Acting Director of the Party Central Committee's Commission for Home Affairs Pham Quoc Anh and other senior officials.

The visit reflects Viet Nam's persistent policy to attach importance to its comprehensive cooperation with China, maintain and boost a positive and stable development of the bilateral relations, says an editorial by Nhan Dan today.

The two countries' friendship and cooperation, especially since the normalization of their relations, have been unceasingly consolidated and developed on the basis of the principles defined by joint statements in high-level visits as well as the awareness by leaders and people of the two countries of the need to foster the Viet Nam-China relations of good neighbourliness, comprehensive cooperation, long-lasting stability and looking towards the future.

The two countries have made considerable progress in trade and economic, scientific and technological cooperation. Their two-way trade reached USD 2 billion in 2000.

The Chinese Government has decided to provide Viet Nam with USD 55 million with one-third as non-refundable aid to invest in technical upgrade of Thai Nguyen Steel Company and Bac Giang Nitrogenous Fertilizer Factory built by China in Viet Nam in the 60s.

The two Governments have taken concrete measures to implement agreements on boosting bilateral friendship and comprehensive cooperation.

The current visit to China by President Tran Duc Luong takes place at the end of the millennium when the two countries are expected to sign new cooperation agreements, including a joint statement on the framework of cooperation in the 21st century between the two countries, an agreement on the Bac Bo (Tonkin) Gulf delineation, an agreement on fishing cooperation in the Bac Bo Gulf, and an agreement on cooperation in the use of atomic energy for peaceful purposes in implementation of high-level agreements, thus creating an impetus for strengthening mutual trust, cooperation and friendship.--VNA