Reviewing bilateral economic and trade ties over the past years, they said two-way trade hit 97.7 million USD last year, up 32.6 year-on-year, and discussed the possibility of enhancing links in trade and oil and gas, among others.
Deputy Minister Do Thang Hai suggested facilitating all-level visits, especially those by businesses and working closely together to realise a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on trade and industry cooperation signed by Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh and Minister Lim Jock Seng last August.
Both sides need to hold trade and investment promotion activities, he said, asking Brunei to provide support for the two countries’ oil and gas firms to enhance partnership, including the Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) and the Brunei National Petroleum Company (Petroleum Brunei) in oil and gas projects in each country and the third country.
The host requested Brunei to assist Vietnam in personnel training and improve the capacity of Halal certification and management agencies, and businesses in the country.
The Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Brunei Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade must exert more efforts to achieve the goal of 500 million USD in two-way trade by 2025 as set by leaders, he said.
At the first meeting of their Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation in Hanoi on February 27 which co-chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh and Brunei’s Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Lim Jock Seng, Vietnam and Brunei committed to lifting two-way trade to 500 million USD by 2025.
Both sides expressed their satisfaction with the development of Vietnam-Brunei friendship and comprehensive cooperation since the establishment of bilateral diplomatic ties 25 years ago and spoke highly of the outcomes of President Tran Dai Quang’s visit to Brunei last August.
They agreed to continue facilitating all-level visits and people-to-people exchange to raise mutual understanding and trust.
The two sides proposed measures to enhance partnership across the fields of economy-trade-investment, national defence-security, oil and gas, agro-fisheries, culture-tourism, education-training, and labour.
They concurred with promoting experience sharing via seminars, investment, trade connectivity as well as extend joint work to survey, exploit, process and distribute oil and gas.
Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh asked the Brunei side to assist Vietnam in training and recognise Halal certification agencies in Vietnam.
On defence-security, the two countries will continue extensively implementing existing agreements and mechanisms while expanding ties among armed forces, especially between the navy and coast guards and broadening collaboration in search and rescue at sea, training, and the fight against terrorism and drug.
Both sides pledged to consider signing agreements on fighting trans-national crimes, judicial assistance in criminal matters, extradition and transfer of sentenced persons.
They promised to continue mutual support at regional and global forums, especially in ASEAN and the United Nations, maintaining ASEAN’s central role in the regional security architecture as well as intensifying ASEAN ties with dialogue countries, including ASEAN-China ties.
Both sides reaffirmed their support to the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and the early formulation of a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC).
The second meeting of this kind is scheduled for 2019 in Brunei.
