(VOVWORLD) - President Vo Van Thuong has called on the Vietnamese community in Austria to stay united to help each other improve their lives, integrate well with the local community, develop business investment activities, and enhance their legal status in the host country.
 President Vo Van Thuong delivers a speech at the meeting with the Vietnamese community in Vienna. (Photo: Thong Nhat/VNA)
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Mr. Thuong made the statement while meeting representatives of the Vietnamese community in Austria and the Vietnamese Associations in Europe as part of his official visit to Austria beginning on Sunday.
He particularly insisted that the Vietnamese community in Austria needs to preserve and promote Vietnamese cultural traditions, and maintain and expand Vietnamese language teaching and learning.
The same day, Mr. Thuong visited the Vietnamese Embassy staff in Austria and visited the Vienna Museum of Art History.
Meeting President of the Austria-Vietnam Society Alfred Gerstl and other Austrian friends, President Thuong emphasized that Austria is one of the 10 largest partners of Vietnam in Europe. Bilateral trade last year reached over 2.7 billion USD.
Alfred Gerstl said Vietnam is an important partner of Austria, who currently has 60 enterprises actively operating in Vietnam.
President Vo Van Thuong also received Peter Jankowitsch, former President of the Austria-Vietnam Society and former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Austria.
During his stay in Austria, President Thuong will hold talks with President Alexander Van der Bellen and meet with leaders of the Senate and some localities. The President will also have a meeting with leaders of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Austria is the first leg of President Thuong's Europe trip, which will also take him to Italy and the Vatican.