China-Vietnam all-round strategic cooperation pays off

World
Europe

China and Vietnam have seen an ever increasing cooperation and a strengthening relationship since the two countries forged diplomatic ties 67 years ago. The two neighboring socialist states have a deep friendship which helps in controlling and settling both existing disputes and arising matters.

In recent years, with the Belt and Road Initiative and “Two Corridors and One Economic Ring” plan, the strategic partnership between China and Vietnam has made massive progress in many areas, including politics, trade, tourism and culture.

Frequent high-level exchanges

Frequent visits between the national and Party leaders of the two countries significantly boost the development of bilateral relations.

In November 2016, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with President Tran Dai Quang of Vietnam in Lima to discuss bilateral relations and topics of common concern.

Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) and Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang witness the signing of a series of bilateral cooperation agreements after their talks in Beijing, capital of China, May 11, 2017. /Xinhua Photo

Xi pointed out that the two countries are friendly neighbors linked by mountains and rivers and share broad interests. Both sides should stick to correct development in order to better benefit the two peoples.

In January 2017, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong paid an official visit to China. Both sides signed 15 cooperation documents referring to diverse domains and issued the China-Vietnam Joint Statement.

Xi Jinping (L) holds a welcoming ceremony for Nguyen Phu Trong, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee, before their talks in Beijing, China, Jan. 12, 2017. /Xinhua Photo‍

In April, Foreign Minister Wang Yi met in Beijing with Vietnam's Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh. Minh thanked China for supporting Vietnam in hosting this year's APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting, and expressed that Vietnam is willing to work with China to develop practical cooperation and safeguard the peace and stability in the South China Sea.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh of Vietnam in Beijing. /Xinhua Photo

In May, Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang and his wife kicked off a five-day state visit to China, which included attending the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation.

Chinese President Xi Jinping speaks on the final day of the APEC CEO Summit ahead of the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Da Nang, Vietnam, Nov. 10, 2017. /Reuters Photo

Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Vietnam on Friday to attend the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting and to pay a state visit to the country. At the 25th APEC CEO Summit in Da Nang, Xi said "China will not stop the pace of opening up to the world, and make it a larger and more comprehensive market in the coming 15 years."

Cross-border economic cooperation zone

In May 2017, China and Vietnam issued a Joint Statement on enhancing the comprehensive strategic partnership of cooperation in the new era and signed the framework cooperation memo to speed up the linking of the Belt and Road Initiative and the “Two Corridors and One Economic Ring” plan.

'Two Corridors and One Economic Ring'

The China-ASEAN Free Trade Area is an important strategy for China to deal with the challenges of economic globalization and regional integration. With this background, Vietnam put forward the idea of constructing “Two Corridors and One Economic Ring” cross-border economic cooperation zone.

The sketch map of "Two Corridors and One Economic Ring" plan /Xinhua Photo

It brings “Kunming of China, Lao Cai, Hanoi, Haiphong and Quang Ninh” and “Nanning of China, Lang Son, Hanoi, Haiphong and Quang Ninh”, the two economic corridors and the Beibu Gulf economic circle together.

The scope of this cross-border economic cooperation zone extends to China’s Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, Hainan, Hong Kong, Macao and Vietnam’s 10 coastal areas. The total span of the two economic corridors nears 140,000 square kilometers, covering over 39 million people.

Chinese Vice-Premier Wang Yang makes a keynote speech in the China-Vietnam Trade and Economic Cooperation Forum 2017 on May 12, 2017. /VCG Photo

When attending the China-Vietnam Trade and Economic Cooperation Forum 2017, Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang pointed out that China is willing to build a long-term cooperative framework with Vietnam against trade protectionism and hope the “Two Corridors and One Economic Ring” construction could better promote China-Vietnam cross-border cooperation.

Bilateral trading with expectation to over hundred billion

China has been the largest trading partner of Vietnam for the last 13 years, which in turn is China's largest among Southeast Asian countries after 2016.

CGTN Photo

Over the past 7 years, the bilateral trade value between China and Vietnam has increased steadily and broke the record of 98.2 billion US dollars in last year.

According to data from China Customs, China continues to quicken the pace of importing from Vietnam, which has become China’s largest oversea source of rice, coffee, cassava, cashew nuts, tropical fruits and vegetables. In the first seven months of 2017, China-Vietnam trade volume reached 61.3 billion US dollars, growing by 18.6%.

CGTN Photo

As a country along the Belt and Road, Vietnam is no doubt one of the most appealing markets for China to sell “Made in China” products and technologies.

Chinese companies have a vast volume of investment in Vietnam, whose relatively low production cost has quickly transformed it into a manufacturing powerhouse in Southeast Asia.

CGTN Photo

Opening-up acceleration of Vietnam

In addition to the low labor cost, updates in business environments and preferential policy contribute to Vietnam’s opening-up progresses as well.

In 2015, Vietnam added a fifth amendment to the Law of Investment, aiming to attract enormous foreign capital. Meanwhile, Vietnam signed free trade agreements with the European Union (EU) and Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), which also provide new opportunities for China-Vietnam economic and trade cooperation.

Cooperation in infrastructure

The two countries have set up working groups for cooperation in infrastructure in order to make overall plans and offer guidance in implementing connectivity projects such as the Lang Son-Hanoi Highway, Mong Cai-Ha Long Highway and Lao Cai-Hanoi-Hai Phong railway.

Vietnam's first light rail Cat Linh-Ha Dong Line is under construction by China Railway Engineering Corporation (CREC). /Xinhua Photo

Vietnam's first urban railway, the Cat Linh-Ha Dong Line, is estimated to run in Hanoi, the capital, in 2018. The 13 km light rail is currently being constructed by the 6th bureau of China Railway Engineering Corporation (CREC).

Vietnam's urban railway Cat Linh-Ha Dong Line is under construction. /VCG Photo

"The construction of the urban railway, as a symbol of Sino-Vietnam friendship, will ease up the traffic jam obsessed by Hanoi citizens," claimed Tang Hong, the general manager of Overseas Company of CREC.

Sample train made in China will be used in Cat Linh-Ha Dong Line of Hanoi, Vietnam. /Xinhua Photo

Friendly connection in other fields

China and Vietnam stick to the good amount of exchanges in other areas such as military, tourism, security and culture. In 2007, they signed the Agreement on Cooperation in Border Defense with the aim to maintain peace, stability, security and order along the Vietnam-China border.

This bird eye view shows the Ganquan Island of China's Xisha Islands, South China Sea, June 1, 2011. /Xinhua Photo

A joint communique was signed by the two countries in 2017, pledging to manage maritime differences and avoid any acts that may complicate the situation and escalate tensions so as to safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea.

In September 2017, Chinese Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission Fan Changlong and Vietnam Defense Minister General Ngo Xuan Lich held the fourth high-level border meeting, agreeing to maintain border stability and push bilateral ties.

The two navies have so far carried out 21 joint patrols in Beibu Gulf and had mutual visits

Xinhua Photo

On November 6, a photo exhibition that showcases the beauty of China and Vietnam opened at Ho Chi Minh Museum in Hanoi. Themed with "good neighborliness and common development," a great many of photos taken by both countries' photographers presented the two countries' natural scenery, history and cultural exchanges, and also displayed the fruits of collaboration of the Belt and Road Initiative and Vietnam's "Two Corridors and One Economic Ring" initiative.