Vietnamese PM urges acceleration of building economic corridor with China

V ietnam and China should speed up the construction of an economic corridor linking their four localities under the cooperation framework of "two economic corridors and one belt," Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said Wednesday.

The two countries should facilitate the construction of the corridor linking Kunming city of China's Yunnan province, and the three Vietnamese localities of Lao Cai, Ha Noi and Hai Phong, and promote cooperation on transport, tourism, mining, education and training, Dung said while meeting with visiting Yunnan Governor Qin Guangrong.

The two sides should also finish their planting of border marks in 2008, and effectively coordinate in using water sources of Red and Mekong rivers, he said.

The prime minister asked Yunnan and four Vietnamese border provinces, Lao Cai, Ha Giang, Lai Chau and Dien Bien, to soon establish a joint working committee to beef up their economic cooperation.

The Vietnamese government will create more favorable conditions for Yunnan to strengthen cooperation with Vietnamese localities, as well as effectively invest in Vietnam.

Qin, leading a delegation of 200 Chinese firms to attend the Vietnam International Trade Fair 2007 opening in the capital of Hanoi on Wednesday, and get to know investment opportunities in Vietnam, said Yunnan wants to boost cooperation with the Vietnamese side in the fields of iron and aluminum bauxite mining, transport and tourism.

Yunnan will effectively cooperate with the Vietnamese side in implementing the "two economic corridors and one belt" framework.

At present, 47 Yunnan firms have investment projects in Vietnam, Qin said, adding that trade between Yunnan and Vietnam has annually increased 60 percent in recent years, and that the province is receiving more and more Vietnamese students.

Source: Xinhua