(VOVworld) - President Truong Tan Sang said that Vietnam values all-around relations with France as one of its top partners during his meeting with French President Francois Hollande on the sidelines of the UN Summit in New York on Monday. 

President Truong Tan Sang (L) and French President Francois Hollande (Photo: VNA).

During the meeting, the two sides expressed pleasure at developments in bilateral relations since the establishment of their strategic partnership in 2013, while agreeing to promote delegation exchanges at all levels in the future, deepening bilateral cooperation dialogue mechanisms on strategy, security, defence, and economics. They agreed to make economic connection the main pillar of Vietnam-France relations, and said that the two sides should encourage their businesses to forge links in fields of France’s strength and in which Vietnam needs to develop, including infrastructure and “smart city” development, public transportation, aviation and space studies, energy, agriculture, food processing, the environment and health care. The Vietnamese President asked France to urge the EU to quickly sign and ratify the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and promptly recognize Vietnam’s market economy. He also asked that France accelerate its ratification of the Vietnam- EU framework agreement on partnership and cooperation (PCA). 

Mr. Sang took the occasion to thank France for helping Vietnam implement development cooperation projects and realize Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). He expressed his desire that the two countries continue to cooperate closely in implementing post-2015 development targets. They agreed on the need to enhance coordination and mutual support at multilateral forums and in international activities, especially UN peacekeeping operations and efforts to cope with climate change. President Sang thanked France for backing Vietnam’s candidacy for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2020-2021 tenure, and asked France to support Vietnam’s bid to join the UNESCO Executive Council in 2015-2019 and the UN Economic and Social Council in 2016-2018. President Truong Tan Sang called on France to continue its support for maintaining peace and stability, ensuring navigation and aviation freedom in the East Sea, and resolving disputes by peaceful measures on the basis of international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). He said that Vietnam will serve as a bridge to connect France and other ASEAN members. The French President said he hopes Vietnam will send a delegation to the 21st Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 21) in Paris in early December.