Ho Chi Minh City of Vietnam and Chongqing city of China agreed on August 30 to set up friendship-city relations in an effort to expand bilateral cooperation in various fields.

Vice Chairman of the HCM City People’s Committee Tran Vinh Tuyen (R) and Chongqing Mayor Tang Liangzhi at the meeting on August 30. (Photo: VNA)

The agreement came after a meeting between Vice Chairman of the HCM City People’s Committee Tran Vinh Tuyen and Chongqing Mayor Tang Liangzhi in the Vietnamese southern largest hub.

Under the pact, they agreed to increase the exchange of visits between governmental officials and people from the two cities, and promote collaboration in economy, trade, education, transport, urban development, culture, tourism, and science-technology to bring benefits for both sides.

Speaking at the meeting, Tuyen said HCM City has established friendship and cooperative ties with seven cities and provinces in China, including Guangdong province and Guangzhou city, but the two sides have only engaged in visit exchanges but have not had many specific cooperation projects.

Against the backdrop of the growing Vietnam-China ties, the establishment of friendship-city relations between HCM City and Chongqing is in line with the common perceptions of top leaders of both nations to foster collaboration between the two countries’ localities, he noted.

The move will help develop the bilateral relationship and create favourable conditions for HCM City to expand cooperation with China’s western region, the vice chairman added.

He moved on to say that the similarities in management, economy, culture, and society between the two cities would be fundamental to reinforcing the bilateral partnership in the future, particularly in the areas of strength like technology and tourism.

Tang, for his part, said the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on establishing the friendship-city relationship will pave the way for the two sides to accelerate cooperation activities and take their relations to a new height.

Trade and tourism ties between HCM City and Chongqing have made remarkable progress over the years, he noted.

Chongqing wants to cooperate with HCM City in transportation, Tang said, adding that enterprises from Chongqing expect HCM City to provide them with all possible conditions to invest in logistics, infrastructure and sea port development, education, and tourism./.

VNF/VNA