Hanoi (VNA) – PresidentTran Dai Quang has praised the Vietnam-Russia Tropical Centre for its contributionsto promoting scientific research and socio-economic development, and ensuring defence-securityin each country, thus strengthening the traditional friendship and strategiccooperation between the two nations.

Addressing a ceremony celebrating the centre’s 30th foundinganniversary in Hanoi on March 7, President Quang said the centre has upheld itsrole as a multi-sectorial tropical science and technology researchestablishment in Vietnam and Russia.

The centre has always coordinated closely with organisations and scientific researchinstitutes of Vietnam, Russia and other countries in the world in the fields ofresearch, application, training and science-technology transfer, he said.

The President asked the centre to harmonise basic research, application research,adaptation and technology transfer to serve defense and economic tasks.

He also stressed the need for the centre to promote the application of researchresults along with developing a number of products with high science and technologycontents and enhance cooperation in researching and modernising infrastructureand technology.

President Quang also hoped that the centre will receive more support and bettercooperation from the State, ministries, sectors and relevant agencies of Russia,thus helping it achieve greater achievements in the coming time for the sake ofthe people of both countries.

On this occasion, President Quangpresented a third-class Military Exploit Order to the centre and a FriendshipOrder to Andrey Kuznetsov, general director of the centre.

Founded on March 7, 1988 under anagreement between Vietnam’s Ministry of National Defence and the Russian Academyof Sciences, the centre works to study biology, medicine, environmentalpollution and treatment of dioxin effects in Vietnam.

It is operating in three mainfields: tropical endurance, tropical ecology and tropical biomedicine. It alsoworks on the technology application and transfer, provides scientific-technologicalservices and train scientists.

The centre is also in charge of coordinating collaboration among research organisationsof Vietnam and Russia.

It has so far performed nearly 3,000 research projects, and published over 40 monographsamong others.

More than 4,000 Russian scientists, including many leading experts, have workedat the centre. Coordination between the centre and its partners from the Republicof Korea, Canada and Japan was set up and has proven effective.-VNA