Minister
of State at the German Federal Foreign Office Cornelia Pieper and a
number of German officials, parliamentarians and friends joined
Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Quoc Cuong,
Vietnamese Ambassador in Germany Do Hoa Binh and close to 1,000
overseas Vietnamese at the event.
Opening the event, Cuong
said leaders of the two countries decided to hold the “Vietnamese Year
in Germany” and the “German Year in Vietnam” under the sponsorship of
State President Nguyen Minh Triet and President Horst Koehler.
These
are large-scaled events covering a wide range of activities in the
fields of politics, economy, culture and people’s exchanges in
different localities in both countries, he said.
The
activities will serve as good chances to introduce the history, culture
and people of each country in order to increase the mutual
understanding between the Vietnamese and German people thus
strengthening the Vietnam-Germany friendship and comprehensive
cooperation, Cuong said.
The Deputy Minister noted that
Germany is now Vietnam’s leading partner in Europe in the fields of
politics, diplomacy, economy, trade, investment, culture, education,
science and technology.
President Horst Koehler’s visit to
Vietnam in 2007 and the Germany trip by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung
a year later created a foundation to boost bilateral relations in a
more practical, effective and comprehensive manner.
Two-way trade reaching USD4.6 billion in 2009 and expected to climb up to USD5 billion this year, the official added.
The
two countries have cooperated and supported each other at multilateral
and international forums as well as in dealing with global challenges.
The
Vietnamese community in Germany has now numbered 100,000, contributing
greatly to the country’s economic and cultural development.
Minister
of State Pieper said Vietnam is a leading political partner of Germany
in Southeast Asia and development of Germany-Vietnam ties is the focus
of all activities during 2010.
The “Vietnamese Year in
Germany” and the “Germany Year in Vietnam” will lay a foundation to
elevate the bilateral relations to a new level, she said.
The
Minister of State spoke highly of the contributions made by overseas
Vietnamese to expanding the friendship between the two countries.
Last month, Pieper visited the capital city of Hanoi to open the “German Year in Vietnam.” |
