BEIJING — Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung met Chinese government and state leaders here yesterday to discuss measures to deepen bilateral co-operation.

After a red-carpet welcome, PM Dung and his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao shared satisfaction at sound developments in all areas of bilateral relations and discussed measures to promote a co-operative partnership.

Premier Wen described Prime Minister Dung’s official visit as an important event furthering the comprehensive, strategic and co-operative partnership under the motto of "friendly neigh-bourliness, comprehensive co-operation, long-lasting stability and looking towards the future" and in the spirit of "good neighbours, good friends, good comrades and good partners".

Wen said he highly valued measures the Vietnamese Government had taken to stabilise its macro-economy and rein in inflation. He also hoped that the Vietnamese people would succeed in building socialism for a prosperous people, a strong country and a just, democratic and civilised society.

PM Dung congratulated the Chinese people on their immense achievements under the leadership of the Communist Party of China during 30 years of an open-door policy, building Chinese-characterised socialism and heightening their country’s role in the international arena.

" Viet Nam persists in its foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multilateralisation and diversification, attaching paramount importance to the friendly neighbourliness and comprehensive co-operation with China," PM Dung said. He also said Viet Nam would work hard to deepen and make the Viet Nam-China partnership more effective.

The two leaders said they were pleased that the two countries had made vigorous multi-faceted developments in their ties and had reached a common awareness on "concretising their comprehensive, strategic and co-operative partnership". To further this, they agreed on a number of important measures, including maintaining visits and meetings of high-ranking leaders, putting a telephone hotline in use as soon as possible, promoting the role of the steering committee for Viet Nam-China bilateral co-operation and existing co-operative mechanisms between key branches, notably the diplomatic service, defence, police and security forces.

They noted a need to further educate people, particularly young people, on the traditional friendship of the two countries, and to boost friendly exchanges between branches, localities and mass organisations in a bid to preserve this friendship through generations.

Accordingly, PM Dung proposed that the two countries should co-ordinate in organising China’s 60th National Day, the 60th anniversary of Viet Nam-China diplomatic ties, and Viet Nam’s 65th National Day - and quickly begin construction of a Viet Nam-China Friendship Palace.

The two sides agreed to authorise relevant agencies to work out measures to develop healthy trade ties. They also said the signing of many agreements between government ministries and sectors and economic deals signed by businesses during the visit marked new progress.

They assigned relevant government ministries and agencies to quickly deploy the "two economic corridors and one economic belt" co-operation scheme, with priority given to building economic zones, promoting trans-national tourism and sharing economic-development experiences.

Although delighted with the near completion of demarcation along their land border, the leaders asked negotiation teams, concerned branches and localities to quickly complete the remaining work.

They said these efforts would soon bring the land-border treaty to life, laying a foundation for building the border zone into one of peace and long-term stability.

The two leaders agreed to push up negotiations for the delineation of waters off the Bac Bo ( Tonkin) Gulf and continue exchanging views on development in the area.

They decided to collaborate in maintaining peace and stability in the East Sea and increase co-operation in exploring and exploiting oil and gas, conducting scientific research, protecting the marine environment, organising joint patrols and rescue drills at sea, combating sea pirates, and co-operation on naval matters.

The two leaders also agreed to work closely to make the seventh ASEM successful.

Following the talks, PM Dung and Premier Wen witnessed the signing of eight important documents. These included governmental agreements on the establishment of a confidential telephone line for the leaders of the two countries, on cross-border medical quarantine, on the provision of credit for the Ha Noi-Ha Dong light-railway project, and another on preferential credit, on building a China-Viet Nam trade and economic zone in Hai Phong, on co-operation between friendship associations in Viet Nam and China, on the construction and operation of Sao Mai-Ben Dinh port, and on strategic co-operation between PetroVietnam and Chinese CNOC.

At his meeting with Party General Secretary, State President Hu Jintao, PM Dung emphasised his visit was aimed at implementing agreements reached between the Vietnamese and Chinese Party leaders and concretising the comprehensive strategic co-operative partnership between the two Parties and two countries.

He also said he believed the success of the visit would help lift the traditional friendship between the two Parties and two countries to a new height.

General Secretary, President Hu warmly welcomed PM Dung’s official visit, which, he said, was a vivid manifestation of the Viet Nam-China strategic partnership and showed the concern of high-ranking leaders from the two countries to boost bilateral ties.

President Hu spoke highly of the results of the talks between PM Dung and Premier Wen, adding that he welcomed measures agreed by the cabinet leaders to deploy the Viet Nam-China comprehensive, strategic partnership and promote co-operation between the two Parties and two countries in specific sectors.

The Vietnamese Party, State and people always attached importance to intensifying relations with China and would do their best to further develop them, PM Dung said.

The two sides agreed that the completion of the land-border demarcation and marker planting in 2008 had great political meaning to the two countries and opened new opportunities for each country, especially for people in border areas. They said this would also create a premise for building peace, stability, friendship and long-lasting co-operation between the two nations.

Regarding sea issues, the two sides confirmed their strict compliance with the agreements and common awareness reached between high-ranking leaders of the two countries - as well as the Declaration of the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC). The two sides pledged to maintain the existing negotiation mechanism in order to seek acceptable basic and long-lasting solutions. — VNS