Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has phone talks with his Russian counterpart Mikhail Mishustin on April 21

PM Phuc affirmed that Vietnam always supports and stands side by side with Russia in the battle against COVID-19.

In response, the Russian PM highly valued what the Southeast Asian nation has achieved in controlling the disease and thanked the Vietnamese Government and people for assisting his country with 150,000 antibacterial cloth masks.

The two leaders agreed to strengthen their countries’ cooperation within the framework of the comprehensive strategic partnership, as well as in the COVID-19 prevention and control such as exchanging biomedical experts and working together in the provision of medical supplies.

They also agreed to continue supporting the affected Vietnamese and Russian citizens in each other’s territories, promptly coordinating to deal with any problems emerging, and creating favourable conditions for the citizens who want to return to their countries.

As the COVID-19 pandemic has caused adverse impacts on the world’s economy and the two countries, the PMs concurred in providing more optimal conditions for bilateral trade so as to fully capitalise on the free trade agreement between Vietnam and the Eurasian Economic Union, of which Russia is a member.

During the talks, they also discussed measures for speeding up important energy cooperation projects, stressing the need to facilitate Vietnamese and Russian businesses’ connections in energy, oil and gas, and auto assembly industries.

The two sides were also unanimous in maintaining frequent exchanges and contact at all levels and pushing ahead with activities of the Vietnam Year in Russia and the Russia Year in Vietnam 2019 – 2020 when the pandemic is over.

On this occasion, PM Phuc offered congratulations to the Russian leaders and people on the 75th anniversary of the Victory Day (May 9). He also invited Mishustin to pay an official visit to Vietnam soon, and the Russian PM accepted with pleasure. VNA