Vietnam- German Festival Kulturfest 2020 to take place on October 2
	DPM, FM fosters robust and enduring ties with Germany over the past 45 years
	Vietnam – Germany, 45 years of cooperation for mutual development

At the event. Photo: VNA

The Ho Chi Minh City Union of Friendship Organisations (HUFO) and the Vietnam - Germany Friendship Association in HCM City held a gathering on October 1 on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of German Reunification (October 3, 1990).

Speaking at the event, Association Chairman Nguyen Anh Tuan affirmed that the bilateral friendship and cooperation has been growing effectively and comprehensively over the years.

Mutual trust and understanding between the two nations have been strengthened via high-level visits and cooperation mechanisms, he said. During the visit to Vietnam by German Chancellor Angela Merkel in October 2011, the two Government leaders signed the Hanoi Joint Statement on the establishment of the Vietnam - Germany strategic partnership, in which specific goals and measures to boost ties in priority fields were outlined.

At the local level, HCM City has taken the lead in carrying out cooperative activities with Germany, including Leipzig city, in various fields.

Tuan described Germany as a major trade partner of the city with a range of projects contributing to boosting bilateral links.

This year, the Vietnam - Germany Friendship Association in HCM City promptly mobilized its members and friends to raise more than VND 330 million (USD 14.000) to the Central Vietnam - Germany Friendship Association to support the German people fight against the COVID-19.

In response to the initiative of the HUFO, the city's Vietnam - Germany Friendship Association also has mobilized 500 medical protective suits, 12,500 medical masks to support the HCM city's people against epidemics and donated 7,500 medical masks for the central city of Da Nang - the recent epicenter of the country’s largest coronavirus outbreak, along with 10,000 medical masks and 10 boxes of hand sanitizer gel to the border guards on Tay Ninh province.

As Vietnam and Germany are both non-permanent members of the UN Security Council this year and Vietnam has also assumed the role of ASEAN Chair 2020 and Germany is Chair of the EU for the second half of the year, Tuan believes that the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement will open up huge opportunities for the two nations’ businesses.

He thanked Germany, together with the EU, for expressing their stance on the East Sea issue, including supporting the peaceful settlement of disputes in line with international law, especially the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

German Consul General in HCM City Josefine Wallat. Photo: VNA

For her part, German Consul General in HCM City Josefine Wallat, said the German Unity Day is a major holiday but this year cannot be celebrated due to the effects of the pandemic. However, COVID-19 has brought the two peoples together, as Vietnam has moved to assist Germany, by sending face masks.

She said a number of German cultural and cuisine activities will take place in HCM City during November to mark the 45th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties.

Germany is the most important trade partner of Vietnam in the EU. Vietnam shipped USD 10.9 billion worth of goods to Germany last year, which in turn earned USD 4.8 billion from exports to the Southeast Asian nation.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Vietnam’s exports to Germany still grew 1.6 percent year-on-year in the first half of 2020, according to the ambassador.

German investors poured over USD 2.1 billion and modern technology into Vietnam last year, up 5.8 percent from 2018, and that 380 German businesses have presence in the country.

Germany is now the 18th largest investor in Vietnam, with over 300 enterprises and 361 projects worth more than USD 2 billion in the fields of mechanical engineering, logistics, chemicals, and renewable energy.

Vietnam has invested in 35 projects valued at over USD 250 million in finance-banking and hospitality in Germany.

About 7,500 Vietnamese students in Germany along with 163 cooperation projects in scientific research between the countries’ universities at present./.

Vietnamese PM, German Chancellor stress importance of peaceful Bien Dong Sea issue settlement Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel, during their phone talks on September 15, stressed the importance of the settlement ...

From Berlin to Yen Bai: 10,000 trees connect people across oceans A project to plant 10,000 trees began its final phase in the northern mountainous province of Yen Bai, when a community meeting was held in ...

More than 90 outstanding students in Hanoi receive Hessen scholarships The Ministry of Education and Training of Vietnam, Hessian Ministry for Science and the Arts, World University Service Germany (WUS) and the Vietnam – Germany ...