Beijing (VNA) – The upcoming visit to China byGeneral Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central CommitteeNguyen Phu Trong demonstrates the traditionalfriendship between the CPV and the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the twoStates, said Xu Liping, Director of the Centre for Southeast Asian Studies atthe Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

In an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency(VNA)'s resident correspondent in Beijing, Xu stressed that Trong is the first foreign leader to visit China afterthe 20th CPC National Congress, which, he said, reflects thespecificity and importance of the relations between the two Parties and States.

After the 19th CPC National Congress, PartyGeneral Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping also selected Vietnam asthe first country to visit, he noted.

Highlighting similarities shared by Vietnam and China,Xu said Vietnam has important influences in the Association of Southeast AsianNations (ASEAN) and it was the first country to establish a comprehensive strategiccooperative partnership with China.

The visit to China from October 30 to November 2 by the Vietnamese Partyleader will help to deepen the strategic trust between the two Parties andStates, diversify the content of the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, and intensify the mutual political trust between China and ASEAN.

According to Xu, during the COVID-19 pandemic combat,the two countries supported each other and effectively cooperated in the spheresof vaccine, medical equipment and diagnostic and therapeutic technology.

The two Parties have established cooperation andexchange mechanisms in theory research, personnel training, and collaboration betweenlocal Party Committees, and shared experience in national governance, andimproving the Party leadership capacity.

China has become Vietnam’s biggest trade partner while Vietnam is the sixth largest trade partner of the neighbouringcountry. In 2019 and 2020, China was the fourth biggest foreign investor in Vietnam, and it climbed to the third position last year.

Xu also stressed the significance of exchanges betweenthe two Parties to the Vietnam-China relations, saying there are prospects forthe two countries to expand cooperation in climate change, green development, solarelectricity and clean energy.

As the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership(RCEP) has come into effect, Vietnam and China have substantial potential toboost the development of small-and medium-sized enterprises and e-commerce, andcross-border cooperation, he said./.