Hanoi (VNA) – The Embassy ofVietnam on September 5 hosted a banquet for about 500 Singaporean guests,foreign diplomats, scholars, and Vietnamese nationals living in Singapore tocelebrate the 73rd National Day.

In her remarks at the event, Ambassador Tao ThiHuong briefed her guests on Vietnam’s hard-won achievements since the countrydeclared its independence.

After seven decades, Vietnam has gone a longway from a backward, war-torn country living in poverty and loss to become adeveloping, middle-income nation which is in the process of industrialisation,modernisation and international integration, she said.

Vietnam has demonstrated that it is a goodfriend and reliable partner amongst the international community, always aimingfor win-win cooperation, she added.

Lawrence Wong, Singaporean Minister of NationalDevelopment and Second Minister of Finance, said Singapore has long been atrusted strategic partner of Vietnam, often offering its support for the latterat international forums.

Wong stressed that he will further fostermultifaceted ties between the two countries, particularly in people-to-peopleexchange, education, culture, and tourism to increase the numbers ofSingaporean people visiting the beautiful and friendly Vietnam.

On the same day, the Vietnamese Embassy inIndia also held a ceremony in New Delhi to mark the National Day, with Ministerof State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha in attendance.

On the behalf of the Government and people ofIndia, Sinha extended his warm greetings to the Government and people ofVietnam on the 73rd National Day, affirming that Vietnam is a key pillar ofIndia’s “Act East” policy, as well as a trusted partner of the South Asiancountry.

India treasures the close friendship andcomprehensive strategic partnership with Vietnam, he said, adding that he isconfident that bilateral relations will grow stronger with expandedcooperation.

Vietnamese Ambassador Ton Sinh Thanh took theoccasion to award scholars, heads of friendship associations and researchinstitutes, and journalists for their outstanding contribution to promoting theVietnam-India relationship.

The National Day was also celebrated in theCzech Republic at a reception hosted by the Embassy of Vietnam and attended byCzech Deputy Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Vojtech Filip and DeputyForeign Minister Lukas Kaucky.

Addressing the event, Vietnamese Ambassador HoMinh Tuan highly spoke of the Vietnam-Czech long-standing friendship which hasbeen strengthened deeper in recent years. It was reflected by the visit ofVietnamese National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan to the CzechRepublic in April 2017 and the visit to Vietnam of Czech President Milos Zemanin June the same year, he said.

Tuan also highlighted the community of morethan 60,000 Vietnamese people living in the Czech Republic that have acted as abridge between the two countries.

For his part, Kaucky congratulated Vietnam onwhat the country has achieved in economic and social affairs and praised thecountry’s distinctive culture.

He expressed his delight at the significantsteps the two sides have made in economy and trade, as well as highly appreciatedthe role of the overseas Vietnamese society who have dedicated themselves toreinforcing and deepening the solid relations between the two nations. –VNA