Bulgaria and Vietnam will work to deepen bilateral economic exchanges and mutual investments. This was the common position of President Rumen Radev and Minister of Industry and Trade of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Nguyen Hong Dien, who held a meeting today in Sofia. The Vietnamese minister is also Chai of the Vietnamese side of the Bulgarian-Vietnamese Intergovernmental Joint Commission for Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation. He is the head of the delegation that is in Bulgaria for the 24th session of the commission on 13-14 May.

Rumen Radev highlighted Vietnam's rapid industrialisation process over the past decades and the sustained high annual growth of the economy, which can serve as an example and create favourable preconditions for further development of the bilateral partnership with Bulgaria in a number of areas - information technology, production of high-tech components and software for the automotive sector, defence industry, agriculture and food production. The Head of State also underlined this country's interest in raising bilateral relations to the level of a strategic partnership.

During the meeting, the historical ties between Bulgaria and Vietnam were highlighted, based on friendship, mutual trust and understanding, which are a solid foundation for the development of bilateral relations. Nguyen Hong Dien confirmed the invitation of the state and political leadership of Vietnam to the Bulgarian Head of State to visit the country, and Rumen Radev stressed that he is planning such a visit, together with representatives of leading Bulgarian companies, to deepen the political dialogue at the highest level and give a new impetus to bilateral economic exchanges.

The importance of the partnership in education, science and tourism between Bulgaria and Vietnam was also among the highlights of the meeting. President Radev pointed to Bulgaria's contribution to the education and vocational training of tens of thousands of Vietnamese citizens in the recent past.  He also confirmed the mutual interest in expanding cultural and educational exchanges.