The aid came amidst the prevalence of COVID-19 and the flood season, helping people in central Vietnam proactively respond to natural disasters.
The aid was granted by Omani Ambassador Saleh Mohamed Ahmed Al Suqri to Vice President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee Truong Thi Ngoc Anh, with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Quang Hieu witnessing the transfer.
Speaking at the meeting, the Omani ambassador expressed his hope that the aid relief would help share some of the difficulties that families have suffered due to natural disasters, contributing to the friendship and cooperation between the two countries.
Thanks to the practical support of the Sultanate of Oman, Anh said that the Vietnam Fatherland Front would promptly transfer the aid package to the central provinces to help stabilise the lives of people there.
Deputy Foreign Minister Pham Minh Hieu highly lauded the practical support that Oman has extended to Vietnam. He also expressed his wish that the Omani side would continue to support and cooperate with Vietnam in the prevention and control of the COVID-19 epidemic, as well as access to vaccines and medical equipment to overcome the pandemic soon.
The two diplomats had a meeting following the handover ceremony, during which Deputy Minister Hieu highly appreciated the efforts of Ambassador Saleh Mohamed Ahmed Al Saqri and the Oman Embassy in Vietnam in promoting cooperation between the two countries in general and between the two foreign ministries in particular.
The two sides also exchanged and agreed on a number of measures to further improve the efficiency of cooperation in the fields of politics - diplomacy, economy, trade and investment.
Praising the efforts of the Government of Vietnam in the fight against the pandemic, as well as the efforts of the Vietnamese people in the face of challenges, especially in natural disasters, the Omani ambassador expressed his belief the Government and people of Vietnam will soon control the pandemic, recovering and developing the economy in the near future.
Ambassador Saleh Mohamed Ahmed Al Suqri said that diplomatic relations between the two countries began in 1992. Export turnover between the two countries has increased 122 times during that time. The two sides have also signed seven agreements across a variety of areas, including promoting economic growth, trade and renewable energy.
He highly lauded the role of the joint-venture intergovernmental Vietnam - Oman Investment Fund (VOI) in performing the role of economic and trade bridge through investment activities in Vietnam, as well as tightening the relationship between the two countries through social security activities.
As COVID-19 broke out in the Middle East and Oman in June last year, through the Oman Embassy in Vietnam, VOI and its partner AIKYA Pharmaceutical Group jointly sent over 100,000 medical masks to assist the Omani people. The VOI-AIKYA joint venture has provided nearly 1.5 million medical masks to support frontline units in their fight against COVID-19 in Vietnam since the beginning of 2020.
