Vietnam, Italy to deepen strategic partnership

Italian President Sergio Mattarella is paying an official state visit to Vietnam at the invitation of Vietnamese State President Truong Tan Sang. The two leaders held talks on Friday in Hanoi to develop the strategic partnership between the two countries.

Later the same day, President Sergio Mattarella was received by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in Hanoi. The Vietnamese PM stressed that the visit of President Sergio Mattarella was a significant milestone to strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries. The two nations will strive to reach the target of $5 billion dollars in bilateral trade in 2016. The Italian president said Italy completely supports Vietnam’s official signing of the EVFTA and the EU’s recognition of the country’s market economy status, adding that the EVFTA will energise Vietnam’s relations with the EU and Italy in particular.