Parliamentarians seek to foster ties with UK

A delegation of Vietnamese parliamentarians led by Nguyen Van Giau, Chairman of the National Assembly's Economic Committee, paid a working visit to the UK from December 14-19 to boost the friendship and cooperation with their British counterparts.

During their stay, on December 17, the guests were received by Chairman of the UK's All-Party Parliament Group on Vietnam (APPG) George Howarth, who affirmed that his group will continue urging the UK Government to further bolster ties with Vietnam and raise its stronger voice in support of the Asian country in issues related to the East Sea and navigation safety.

He also vowed to back Vietnam at the European Parliament and wished to earn the country's support in international issues.

For his part, Giau, who is head of the newly-established Vietnam-UK Friendship Parliamentarians' Group (VUFPG), thanked APPG for raising funds for Vietnamese Agent Orange victims and Howarth himself for supporting Vietnam when China illegally placed its oil rig Haiyang Shiyou-981 in Vietnam 's exclusive economic zone and continental shelf last May. 

VUFPG will work closely with APPG to further promote the relations between the two nations in the future, he said. 

The same day, the delegation met with British parliamentarians who will attend to the 132 nd Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU-132) to be hosted by Vietnam next year. 

Giau informed the hosts of Vietnam's preparations for the event, which he said will create an important forum for the Union's member parliaments to outline post-2015 development strategies as well as help raise the voice of Asian nations in the IPU. 

During their trip, the delegation had a working session with the Vietnam-UK Network, which gathers individuals, organisations and businesses joining their hands to boost bilateral relations.-VNA

Source: http://en.vietnamplus.vn/