China, Vietnam reaffirm commitment to advancing bilateral friendship

China and Vietnam have agreed to advance the cause of China-Vietnam friendship and have reaffirmed their unswerving support for each other in pursuing a socialist path suited to their national conditions.

The two countries made the announcement on Tuesday in a joint statement released in the context of Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to Vietnam.

The two sides reaffirmed their commitment to jointly elevating strategic mutual trust to a higher level.

The Vietnamese side reaffirmed its firm commitment to the one-China policy, recognizing that there is only one China in the world, that the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China, and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory, read the statement.

Vietnam supports the peaceful development of cross-Straits relations and China's cause of national reunification and firmly opposes all forms of "Taiwan independence" separatist activities, it added.

In the statement, the two sides reaffirmed the need to build a more practical pillar of security cooperation and agreed to take the development of China's new quality productive forces and Vietnam's new types of productive forces as an opportunity to build a more extensive and in-depth all-round cooperation pattern.

The two sides also agreed to work together to consolidate public support for the China-Vietnam community with a shared future to enhance multilateral strategic coordination and properly handle and resolve differences to safeguard the overall interests of the China-Vietnam friendship.

China and Vietnam have agreed to build a more extensive and in-depth all-round cooperation pattern.

The two countries will accelerate synergy between their development strategies, implement in earnest the cooperation plan between the two governments on synergizing the Belt and Road Initiative and the Two Corridors and One Economic Circle strategy, according to the statement.

China and Vietnam will prioritize accelerating the interconnectivity of railway, expressway and port infrastructure between the two countries, said the statement. The two sides will develop international railway transport and launch more cross-border train services between them. They will also encourage airlines of the two countries to resume and add flights in keeping with market needs.

China is actively promoting access procedures for Vietnamese farm products such as citrus and herbal medicine. Vietnam will accelerate the import of sturgeon from China.

In the statement, the two sides agreed to implement the agreement on search and rescue at sea and another on establishing a hotline on incidents in fishing activities at sea.

In the joint statement, the two countries also agreed to properly manage and resolve differences on maritime issues.

The two sides had an in-depth and candid exchange of views on maritime issues and stressed the need to better manage and actively settle their differences and jointly safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea, said the statement.

The two sides agreed to, through friendly consultations, actively seek a fundamental and long-term solution acceptable to both sides and in line with the agreement on the basic principles guiding the settlement of sea-related matters between China and Vietnam as well as international law, such as the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, said the statement.

They also agreed not to take actions that would complicate the situation and escalate the disputes, in order to jointly maintain maritime stability, said the statement.

(With input from Xinhua)