Hu Jintao, general secretary of the
Central Committee of the CPC and Chinese president, met in the central
Vietnamese city of Da Nang Wednesday evening with Nguyen Ba Thanh,
secretary of the Da Nang City Committee of the Communist Party of
Vietnam (CPV).
During the meeting, Hu spoke highly of the city's achievements
and of his hope that different localities in the two nations will
strengthen exchanges and cooperation for common development.
Thanh said the city will learn from China's experiences and
welcomed Chinese investment in the city.
Hu arrived in Da Nang on Wednesday afternoon on a state visit to
Vietnam as a guest of General Secretary of the CPV Central
Committee Nong Duc Manh and President Nguyen Minh Triet.
Hu is also scheduled to attend the 14th APEC (Asia-Pacific
Economic Cooperation) Economic Leaders' Informal Meeting from
Nov.17 to 19 in Hanoi, capital of Vietnam.
In a written statement delivered upon arrival, Hu said that the
Chinese side is delighted to see Vietnam's achievements under the
CPV's leadership.
He said the Chinese side is convinced that Vietnam would become
a modern socialist industrialized country under the CPV's
leadership.
Hu reviewed the traditional friendship between the two peoples
given the countries’ friendly neighborly relations sharing
mountains and waters.
He said Sino-Vietnamese relations had undergone continuous and
important progress in the new century under the guidance of the
principles of long-term stability, future-orientation, and overall
cooperation.
Meanwhile, bilateral friendly exchanges and cooperation have
been furthered, and the two countries and their peoples have become
good friends, comrades and partners, noted Hu.
He said he is looking forward to exchanging views with
Vietnamese leaders on bilateral relations as well as international
and regional issues of common concern.
He said this visit will help promote traditional friendship and
cooperation in various fields.
Vietnam is the first leg of Hu's four-nation tour, which will
also take him to Laos, India and Pakistan.
Chinese statistics show that Sino-Vietnamese trade volume last
year topped US$8 billion, and the figure in 2006 is expected to
exceed US$10 billion .
(Xinhua News Agency November 16, 2006)