The official talks were held within the framework of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s official visit to the Dominican Republic from November 19-21, 2024, at the invitation of Dominican President Luis Abinader Corona.
During the talks, held in a friendly and open atmosphere, the two leaders affirmed the significance of the first high-level visit since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the Dominican Republic (July 7, 2005), considering it a historical milestone and an important impetus for bringing bilateral relations to a new stage of deeper and more practical development.
On behalf of the Government and people of Vietnam, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh expressed his gratitude to President Luis Abinader Corona for the warm and hospitable reception accorded to the Government delegation and the people of the Dominican Republic.
Prime Minister Chinh conveyed cordial greetings from General Secretary To Lam, President Luong Cuong, and Chairman of the National Assembly Tran Thanh Man to President Luis Abinader Corona. He also extended invitations from Vietnam’s top leaders for President Luis Abinader Corona to visit Vietnam in 2025, when the two countries will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, with a view to elevating the relationship based on the current good foundation.
President Luis Abinader Corona gladly accepted the invitation, and the timing of the visit will be agreed upon through diplomatic channels.
At the talks, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh highly appreciated the economic and social achievements of the Dominican Republic in the past two decades, especially its maintenance of high economic growth rates, among the highest in the region. For his part, President Luis Abinader Corona expressed his admiration for Vietnam’s history of national liberation in the 20th century, as well as its significant achievements in all aspects over nearly 40 years of renewal (Doi Moi).
The two sides expressed their satisfaction with the positive development of bilateral friendship and cooperation, especially in the fields of politics-diplomacy, economy, trade, and development cooperation, as well as cooperation and mutual support at multilateral forums. The leaders emphasized the significance and importance of preserving and promoting the value of the statue of President Ho Chi Minh in the capital city of Santo Domingo and the statue of Professor Juan Bosch, the first democratically elected president of the Dominican Republic, in Hanoi, considering them symbols of solidarity and friendship between the two nations.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and President Luis Abinader Corona agreed on the need to further promote exchanges and contacts at all levels, through all channels of the Party, Government, National Assembly, local cooperation, and people-to-people exchanges, in order to consolidate the political foundation, enhance mutual understanding, and create a solid basis for expanding and improving the efficiency of bilateral cooperation.
The two leaders also agreed on the necessity to continue完善ing the legal framework for bilateral cooperation, effectively utilizing the mechanism of political consultation between the two foreign ministries, and soon holding the second political consultation.
Immediately after the talks, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and President Luis Abinader Corona witnessed the signing of cooperation documents and met with the press to announce the results of the talks – Photo: VGP
The two sides agreed to promote the expansion and deepening of bilateral cooperation in all fields, especially in economy, trade, and investment, double taxation avoidance, agriculture, science and technology, innovation, digital transformation, green transition, digital economy, telecommunications, renewable energy, security, and crime prevention, sustainable tourism development, culture, education, environmental protection, and response to climate change… and soon organize the first meeting of the Joint Committee on Economic, Trade, and Industrial Cooperation.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh proposed that the two sides soon negotiate a free trade agreement, an investment protection agreement, and cooperation agreements in culture, education, training, and visa exemption. President Luis Abinader Corona expressed his thanks to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam for its support in providing effective vaccines against African swine fever to the Dominican Republic.
The two leaders emphasized the need and potential for expanding business and investment cooperation between the two countries, especially in telecommunications, energy and oil & gas, construction, agriculture, and tourism.
They shared the necessity of strengthening trade and investment promotion activities, connecting businesses, and facilitating market access for each other’s strengths export products, while also using each country as a gateway to access the markets of the two regions of Southeast Asia and Latin America-Caribbean.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and President Luis Abinader Corona affirmed their commitment to promoting multilateralism, enhancing cooperation, and mutual support at international organizations and multilateral forums in which both countries are members, such as the United Nations, the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Non-Aligned Movement, the framework of South-South cooperation, and the Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation (FEALAC), for the benefit of the people of the two countries, contributing to peace, stability, cooperation, and development in the two regions and the world.
Regarding regional and international issues of shared concern, the two sides agreed to support the settlement of international disputes and conflicts by peaceful means, in accordance with international law, especially the Charter of the United Nations and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Concluding the talks, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and President Luis Abinader Corona held a joint press meeting and announced the Vietnam-Dominican Republic Joint Statement, affirming the determination of the two Governments and announcing the orientations and measures agreed upon by the two sides to further strengthen the solidarity, friendship, and cooperation between Vietnam and the Dominican Republic in the future.
The two leaders also witnessed the signing of several bilateral cooperation documents, including a Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of a Joint Committee for Trade and Technical Promotion and a Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Training between the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam and the Institute of Higher Education in Diplomacy and International Relations of the Dominican Republic (INESDYR).
