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Chairman of the municipal People's Committee Phan Van Mai |
Speaking at the event, Standing Deputy Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee and Chairman of the municipal People's Committee Phan Van Mai emphasized that the bilateral and multilateral relationship between Vietnam and the UK has been developing effectively, especially after the two countries lifted the relations to a strategic partnership in 2010 along with many important cooperation frameworks and mechanisms having been opened.
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At the ceremony |
The Vietnam - UK Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) was signed in 2020 and the UK formally agreed to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in July 2023 which is considered as the economic bright spot for the period 2020-2023 and beyond.
These agreements have brought bilateral trade between the two countries with US$6.8 billion by 2022 which helped the UK become Vietnam's third-largest trading partner in Europe and Vietnam's ninth-largest export market in the world.
Currently, nearly 100,000 Vietnamese people are living and working in the country and 13,000 students are studying in the UK.
Chairman Phan Van Mai said that by July 2023, the UK ranked 11th out of 120 countries and territories investing in Ho Chi Minh City with a total investment capital of nearly US$960 million via 273 projects.
Ho Chi Minh City is ready to welcome and create favorable conditions for visits as well as working trips of delegations of British leaders, businesses and people to the city.
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British Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City Emily Hamblin speaks at the event |
According to British Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City Emily Hamblin, the two countries' relationship can be set to a sustainable relationship if two sides join hands in solving challenges and opportunities in the next five decades.
As for Ho Chi Minh City, the UK currently makes close cooperation progress with many projects in the city. British Consul General Emily Hamblin affirmed that the UK desired to continue to be a reliable partner of Vietnam in general and Ho Chi Minh City in particular in the coming time.
On the same day, the British Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City held a press conference to introduce activities for the UK Festival in Ho Chi Minh City on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations between the UK and Vietnam.
The event will take place at Le Loi Street, District 1 from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on September 16, with more than 70 booths and exhibition spaces showcasing British strengths in many fields.
Additionally, there are presence of former Liverpool FC player Glen Johnson, the British military band, British boy band 911 and Vietnamese band Chillies at the festival.
