Cuba and Vietnam strengthen economic and scientific collaboration

Cuba and Vietnam strengthened bilateral economic and scientific technical collaboration today, as a result of the 38 session of the intergovernmental commission that met virtually between the Caribbean capital and Hanoi.

Chaired by the Cuban Minister of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment, Rodrigo Malmierca, and the Vietnamese Minister of Construction, Pham Hong Ha, the parties highlighted the excellent state of relations between both governments and peoples, as well as the potential to be developed by looking to the future.

In this regard, Malmierca stressed that this intergovernmental mechanism allows for the planning and agreement of the actions to be promoted jointly in the next period.

This session, he stressed, was held in a special context of relations, since last December 2 the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries was reached, which in the face of current global challenges will continue to strengthen, he said.

Likewise, he stressed that despite the effects caused by Covid-19, economic and commercial ties continued to develop and the commercial agreement signed at the end of 2018 came into force on April 1, 2020, in the context of President Miguel's visit. Díaz-Canel to Vietnam.

We agreed on the bilateral economic agenda for the 2020-2025 period, signed this Tuesday during the session, and rice supplies to Cuba were maintained, as well as bilateral cooperation in the agri-food sector, he argued.

At another point, Malmierca offered an overview of the complex situation facing the island, as a consequence of the impact of Covid-19 on all levels and the tightening of the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the United States for more than half a century. .

Likewise, he argued that despite the contraction of bilateral trade in the year due to the pandemic, Vietnam remains Cuba's second trading partner in the Asian region and among the top 20 globally.

In this context, the parties signed several memorandums of understanding in the areas of cooperation and business, the field study in Vietnam of the Cuban Porvac vaccine against classical swine fever, and the implementation of joint tasks in science, technology and innovation.

In turn, a debt rescheduling agreement was signed between the Vietnamese company Vinafood 1 and the Cuban company Alimport, in addition to the protocol of the 38th session of the intergovernmental commission.

For his part, the head of the Asian nation, who was awarded the Medal of Friendship for his contribution in this regard, elaborated on the scope of various agreements signed to date and the political ties between both governments and peoples.

He also referred to his country's interest in promoting the potential that sectors such as banking, finance, technology, culture and sports offer for bilateral exchange, among others.