Vietnam would like to beef up the comprehensive relations with China in a sustainable way, especially cooperation in the fields of economy and trade, Vietnamese President Tran Duc Luong told Xinhua in an exclusive interview on Friday.

"A great aspiration of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the state and the people is to step up the Vietnam-China ties in a comprehensive, rapid and sustainable way, bringing them to a new height and tapping big potentials of the two countries in various fields," the president stated.

Vietnam desires faster development in the bilateral cooperative relations in the fields of economy and trade, he said, noting "It is the foundation for the broadened and deepened development of other ties between the two countries."

The prospect of cooperation in other important fields such as politics, diplomacy, defense, security, culture, science and technology, and tourism is also very rosy, Luong noted.

During his upcoming visit to China, he will exchange views and put forth major orientational suggestions so as to create a new impetus to all-faceted ties, further tapping the two countries' great potential for the benefit of the two peoples in the context of globalization and international economic integration, Luong said.

Luong will pay a state visit to China from July 18-22 at the invitation of Chinese President Hu Jintao. "I believe that my visit will make positive contribution to the development of friendly and comprehensive cooperative ties between Vietnam and China," he said.

The visit "reaffirms the determination and aspiration of leaders and peoples of Vietnam and China to bring their all-round cooperative and friendly ties to a new height," he said.

"I strongly believe that in the future, the Vietnam-China friendly and comprehensive cooperative relations will be ceaselessly reinforced, broadened and deepened, in which economic and trade cooperation will be a major focus," Luong said. The sound and stable development of the bilateral ties is beneficial to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region as well as the whole world, he added.

He said the Vietnam-China relations have seen rapid development in a wide range of areas, bringing about many practical benefits for both sides with 44 agreements and state-level commitments signed so far.

"Frequent high-level visits and contacts between the two countries on a yearly basis help increase trust and orient the comprehensive and sustainable relations between the two states and two peoples. The exchange and cooperative ties between various sectors, localities and communities of the two countries also enhance mutual understanding and serve the national development," Luong stated.

He said the economic and trade relations also gained encouraging results with China having become Vietnam's biggest trading partner, and  statistics show the two-way trade between the two countries reached US$7.2 billion in 2004.

"In early 2004, leaders of Vietnam and China set the target of posting two-way trade at US$5 billion in 2005 and US$10 billion in 2010. It's clear that the figure in 2010 will exceed the target," Luong said.

Referring to investment, he said that by May 2005, China had 328 investment projects worth US$675.6 million in Vietnam, ranking the 15th biggest foreign investor in the country. The two sides are implementing a series of large cooperative projects using preferential loans offered by the Chinese government.

"Sectors, localities and enterprises of the two countries are promoting cooperation on investment, especially in the fields of industry and transport. Vietnam has eager demand for Chinese technologies and equipment," the Vietnamese president said. 

(Xinhua News Agency July 17, 2005)