Beijing and Hanoi share destiny

China and Vietnam should maintain close high-level exchanges, ensure Sino-Vietnamese cooperation yields more positive results, and promote people-to-people exchanges, President Xi Jinping has said as the two countries mark the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations this year. Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks on Wednesday while talking with To Lam, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee.

China and Vietnam not only share similar cultures and systems, but also have common ideals and strategic interests, and both sides have intensified reform and opening-up. In the 75 years since the establishment of diplomatic ties, the two countries have stood together through thick and thin, and worked hand in hand while pursuing national liberation and socialist construction.

Win-win cooperation between China and Vietnam is in the best interests of the people in both countries. But the fast-changing international landscape may create some challenges for them. In such a situation, the two sides should review the past and learn from their experiences in order to move forward steadily.

The top leaders of the two countries have been frequently exchanging visits since the normalization of Sino-Vietnamese relations in 1991, which has helped deepen mutual political trust. While in 1999 the leaders of the two countries made "long-term stability, future orientation, good-neighborly friendship and comprehensive cooperation" a guideline for deepening bilateral ties, in 2002 they reached a consensus that the two countries and peoples should be good neighbors, good friends, good comrades and good partners who trust and help each other and develop together. And in 2008, the two countries agreed to further strengthen the comprehensive strategic partnership and raise bilateral ties to a new level.

That President Xi attaches great importance to Sino-Vietnamese relations is stating the obvious. During his speech at the National Assembly of Vietnam in 2015, Xi called on the two countries to make joint efforts to build a new China-Vietnam comprehensive strategic partnership of cooperation, and make greater contributions to building an Asia of lasting peace and common prosperity.

Xi paid his third visit to Vietnam in 2023, during which the leaders of the two sides agreed to build a China-Vietnam community with a shared future by further strengthening the two countries' comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership. That marked the beginning of a period of rapid development for bilateral ties.

In terms of trade, bilateral relations have developed at a fast pace, with the bilateral trade volume jumping from $32.32 million in 1991 to $7.2 billion in 2004, the year China surpassed Japan to become Vietnam's largest trading partner and source of goods. China has been Vietnam's largest trading partner and second-largest export market since then, while Vietnam is China's largest trading partner in ASEAN and fifth-largest in the world.

The two countries are also carrying out all-round cooperation in fields such as agriculture, infrastructure, energy, the digital economy, finance, environmental protection, green industries, cross-border logistics, e-commerce, cultural tourism, healthcare and disaster mitigation.

Besides, Vietnam announced the establishment of a consulate-general's office in Chongqing as part of the two countries' efforts to increase investment opportunities and boost cultural exchanges. Chongqing was chosen as the site because it is a major manufacturing and international logistics hub in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, and boasts key geographical advantages.

Furthermore, in order to establish another railway link between the two countries, Vietnam has decided to begin work on the Lao Cai-Hanoi-Hai Phong railway in northern Vietnam by the end of 2025. The railway, expected to be completed by the end of 2030, will connect with China's railway network.

Safeguarding national security is a very important part of China-Vietnam ties because the two countries began military cooperation relatively late due to some pending disputes after the normalization of relations in 1991. The two sides finalized the land boundary treaty in 1999, and signed a series of agreements on the demarcation of their land boundary in 2009, deciding that of the disputed 227 square kilometers, about 114 sq km belong to China and about 113 sq km to Vietnam.

The resolution of the disputes deepened the political mutual trust between the two sides and helped expand cooperation in the defense sector. Now China and Vietnam conduct regular joint patrols along their land border and the Beibu Gulf. Last year, China and Vietnam also agreed to establish a hotline between their navies in order to deepen trust between the two militaries.

Although the development of bilateral ties has not always been smooth, friendly cooperation remains the common aspiration of China and Vietnam and their people. And after 75 years of ups and downs, the two sides have gathered enough experience to resolve their differences, if any, in the future.

As Sino-Vietnamese relations enter a new era, the common interests between China and Vietnam far outweigh their differences. This will help the two sides to elevate bilateral ties from good-neighborly friendship and comprehensive cooperation to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, which will ultimately lead to the building of a China-Vietnam community with a shared future.

The author is director of the Center for China's Relations with Neighboring Countries at Fudan University. The views don't necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

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