China, Vietnam vow solidarity

China and Vietnam signed a series of deals on Sunday in the areas of connectivity, agricultural products, customs, finance, human resources, media and education, in a bid to further cement the pragmatic cooperation between the two neighboring countries.

The signing of the agreements was witnessed by visiting Premier Li Qiang and Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.

Li arrived in Hanoi late Saturday afternoon to kick off a three-day visit to the Southeast Asian country.

The visit came after Li concluded a visit to Laos, where he attended a series of leaders' meetings on East Asian cooperation and made an official visit.

Noting that both China and Vietnam are developing countries at a crucial stage of modernization, Li told the Vietnamese prime minister that Beijing firmly supports Hanoi in pursuing a steady socialist path that suits its national conditions.

He expressed willingness to work with Vietnam to jointly implement the cooperation plan for the synergy of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative and Vietnam's "Two Corridors and One Economic Circle" plan.

China is ready to deepen cooperation with Vietnam in connectivity, trade and investment, tourism, healthcare, disaster prevention and reduction, and expand cooperation in local currency settlement, the digital economy and green development, Li said.

Statistics show that China is Vietnam's largest trading partner and remains the largest export market for Vietnamese agricultural products.

From January to July, bilateral trade volume reached $145.07 billion, an increase of 20.9 percent compared with the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

The Vietnamese prime minister emphasized that developing relations with China is the top priority and strategic choice of the Communist Party of Vietnam and the Vietnamese government.

He called on the two countries to explore new models of collaboration, such as cross-border economic cooperation zones, and to intensify exchanges in education, tourism and youth.

During the talks, the two leaders also reiterated their commitment to sticking to friendly consultation in properly handling differences, and to safeguarding maritime peace and stability and expanding maritime cooperation.

On Saturday, upon his arrival, Li also met with To Lam, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and Vietnamese president.

Li expressed hope that the two sides will simultaneously promote the "hard connectivity" of railway, expressway and port infrastructure and the "soft connectivity" of smart customs to provide solid support for improving the facilitation of trade and investment and safeguarding the stability and smooth flow of industrial and supply chains.

The Vietnamese president said his country is willing to take the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries next year as an opportunity to maintain regular high-level exchanges, and to strengthen exchanges between parties, legislatures and civil societies.

China and Vietnam have engaged in close high-level exchanges in recent years. After assuming office, the Vietnamese president made China his first destination in August for an overseas visit, reflecting the great importance he attaches to developing China-Vietnam relations.

President Xi Jinping also met on Friday in Beijing with Luong Cuong, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee.

After wrapping up the visit to Vietnam, Li will fly to Islamabad, Pakistan, on Monday, to attend the 23rd Meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and to make an official visit to Pakistan.