Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung welcomed new UK Ambassador to Vietnam Giles Lever during a reception in Hanoi on January 13th.

The PM suggested facilitating bilateral political, economic, trade, and investment ties through exchanging visits, ultimately increasing trade between the two nations.

He expressed hope that Lever will work closely with the Vietnamese and UK authorities to foster cooperation across education, health care, and national defence and security.

PM Dung believes the ambassador will contribute positively to the strategic partnership between the two nations.

Lever, for his part, assured his host that the UK is interested in extending its partnership with Vietnam further, with a focus on investment, trade, education, health care, and retail.

He praised Vietnam for its better business climate, which has facilitated foreign investment flow from the UK and elsewhere.

The new ambassador confirmed that the UK is always eager to work with Vietnam in education training and national defence and security, as well as on other global issues such as climate change, rising sea levels, and peacekeeping.

The UK supports Vietnam in broadening its partnership with the EU, he said./.