NA Chairwoman holds talks with President of the Senate of the Netherlands

Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan held talks with President of the Senate of the Netherlands Ankie Broekers-Knol in The Hague on March 27, during which Ngan said he hopes that the visit will open up new prospects for stronger cooperation and relations between Vietnam, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the European Union (EU) amid the two nations’ celebration of the 45^th anniversary of diplomatic ties.

Broekers-Knol greatly valued Vietnam’s successful hosting of the 132nd Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly (IPU-132) and relevant events, saying the visit by NA Chairwoman Ngan has offered a good opportunity for both sides to share legislative experience and reinforce parliamentary ties.

Regarding the outcomes of her earlier talks with Speaker of the House of Representatives Khadija Arib, the Vietnamese NA leader said the two sides compared notes on a raft of issues and agreed to bolster cooperation in specific areas.

Vietnam set up the Vietnam-Netherlands Cooperation and Friendship Association for the 2013-2018 tenure, which has greatly contributed to intensifying people-to-people exchanges, Ngan said while hoping that the Netherlands will soon establish a similar association to deepen mutual understanding and friendship.

The two parliamentary leaders noted with satisfaction the growing economic, trade and investment relations between Vietnam and the Netherlands over the past few years.

Ngan told her host that the Vietnamese Party and State highly appreciated the strategic partnership agreement on climate change adaptation and water management signed in 2010 and the strategic partnership agreement on sustainable agriculture and food security inked in 2014 between Vietnam and the Netherlands which were seen as effective cooperation models contributing to sustainable development in Vietnam.

She glowingly spoke of the Netherlands’s assistance in building the Mekong Delta Plan (MDP) to cope with climate change and improve water management.

Vietnam takes heed to environmental issues and hi-tech agriculture development, which are the strengths of the Netherlands, and hopes the European country will continue sharing experience with Vietnam in the areas, Ngan said.

Ngan also suggested the two nations sign a bilateral tourism cooperation agreement to provide a legal foundation for the establishment and implementation of specific cooperation programmes, adding that Vietnam and the Netherlands want to bolster collaboration in such potential areas as tourism, transport, education-training, and culture.

The two leaders extolled cooperation between Vietnamese and Dutch localities, which have helped promote mutual understanding, friendship and cooperation between the Vietnamese and Dutch people.

Broekers-Knol said her nation desires to cooperate with Vietnam in a multitude of fields, particularly in response to climate change and sea level rise, noting that her country had built a perfect breakwater system when sea level rise left critical impacts on the Netherlands 70 years ago.

At the talks, they showed their keen interest in high-tech agriculture and discussed measures to tackle global food security. The Vietnamese top legislator briefed the host about Vietnam’s agricultural production and exports over recent years.

With regard to bilateral legislative relations, the leaders applauded the vigorous growth of relations between the Vietnamese National Assembly and the Dutch Senate over the past years. In that spirit, Ngan asked the two sides continue exchanging delegations to promote mutual understanding and trust, improve the efficiency of consultation mechanisms and closely cooperate at multilateral forums such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the Asia-Europe Parliamentary Partnership (ASEP).

Ngan underlined the need for the two law-making bodies to supervise the implementation of cooperation agreements signed by the two governments while intensifying information exchanges on parliamentary activities in each nation.

Concerning peace, stability, security, safety and freedom of aviation and navigation, Ngan said she hopes that the Netherlands will voice its support for the East Sea issue, the peaceful settlement of disputes, and the strict adherence and enforcement of international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC).

She thanked the Netherlands for offering the best possible conditions for the Vietnamese community to help them make greater contributions to the host nation’s socio-economic development and all-around cooperation between the two nations.

Also at the talks, NA Chair Ngan wrote the visitors' book and visited the meeting hall of the Senate of the Netherlands.