Party chief’s visit to lift Vietnam-Thailand ties Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s upcoming official visit to Thailand is expected to raise the Vietnam-Thailand relationship to a new height and boost the fine friendship as well as mutual trust and understanding between the two countries. Hoang Binh Quan, head of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee’s Commission for External Relations, made the remark in his interview granted to the press on the threshold of the visit. The June 25-27 visit, which is made at the invitation of Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, is the second to Thailand by a Vietnamese Party General Secretary, Quan said, adding that the first one was made by then General Secretary Do Muoi in 1993. He said the visit takes place in the context of the fruitful development of the Vietnam-Thailand relationship, noting that the two neighbouring countries have nurtured their traditional friendship and diplomatic ties for 37 years.   Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong In recent years, the two sides have regularly exchanged high-ranking delegations and resumed the second Thailand-Vietnam Joint Cabinet Retreat in October last year. Their economic and trade links have been expanded and deepened while bilateral cooperation in other areas such as security, national defence, culture, tourism, education and training has also seen significant developments, he added. According to Hoang Binh Quan, the visit is made at a time when the Asia-Pacific region, including Southeast Asia, is becoming the world’s political-economic centre. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is increasing intra-bloc connectivity with a determination to accelerate the Roadmap for an ASEAN Community by 2015, consolidate and maintain its central role in the region while Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) cooperation is becoming more active with the expansion of relations with partners and new contents of cooperation. He noted that as ASEAN is facing a lot of difficulties and challenges, it needs to exert itself to promote its important role in the regional architecture in order to realise its set community objectives effectively and on schedule as well as ensure regional peace and security. Quan described the visit as an opportunity for Vietnam and Thailand to review achievements in their relationship as well as discuss major orientations and measures to foster the bilateral ties in the coming time. The visit is an important milestone and impetus to boost the two countries’ relationship, he said, adding that it is also expected to exert positive impacts on accelerating the formation of the ASEAN Community that is politically cohesive, economically integrated and socially responsible as well as promoting ASEAN’s central role in the regional architecture for peace, cooperation and development in the region. The official went on to say that the Party leader’s visit is to continue implementing the Vietnamese Party and State’s foreign policy of active and proactive international integration in a synchronous and comprehensive manner. It affirms Vietnam’s policy of attaching importance to strengthening the friendship and cooperation with regional countries as well as its responsibility in joining hands with other member states to build a strong ASEAN Community, he said. This is also a chance for the Vietnamese Party to consolidate and strengthen its relations with political parties in Thailand, creating a firm political foundation for the bilateral ties, he added. According to Hoang Binh Quan, during his visit, Party leader Nguyen Phu Trong is scheduled to hold talks with Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and meet with the Thai King, the Speaker of the House of Representative and the President of the Senate of Thailand. He will also host receptions for leaders of Thai political parties and visit Nakhon Phanom province, a memorial area dedicated to late President Ho Chi Minh, the Thailand-Vietnam friendship village and a number of economic and cultural facilities in the country. The two sides are expected to issue a joint statement on the official establishment of the strategic partnership, opening up a new chapter in their bilateral ties, he said. Source: VNA