Vietnam promotes multi-faceted cooperation with Israel   Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh (R) receives Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely (Photo: VNA) Vietnam continually attaches importance to promoting friendship and multi-faceted cooperation with Israel, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh told Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely at a reception in Hanoi on August 26.  Minh welcomed the guest’s visit to Vietnam from August 23-26 and expressed his delight at the positive strides in the two nations’ relations in recent years, especially in trade, agriculture, science-technology and education-training.  He urged the two sides to increase all-level delegation exchanges and raise trade to 2 billion USD in the near future while pushing ahead with negotiations to sign a bilateral agreement on science and technology and a cooperation programme on education and training between 2016 and 2018.  Vietnam hopes Israel will continue to share experience in agriculture, science-technology, education-training and multilateral external affairs, he said.  In turn, Deputy FM Tzipi Hotovely highly valued Vietnam’s position in the region and asserted that Israel considers Vietnam a key partner in Asia and hopes to develop multi-dimensional collaboration.  She said she was pleased that some cooperative projects have been effectively implemented, such as the dairy cow farming demonstration project in Ho Chi Minh City and the TH True Milk project in central Nghe An province.  Earlier, the Israeli Deputy FM had talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Vu Hong Nam, during which the two sides exchanged specific measures to enhance multi-faceted cooperation between the two countries.  The host and guest agreed to increase all-level delegation exchanges, especially among high-ranking officials, and work closely at international forums.  Economically, the two sides agreed to enhance meetings between ministries, sectors and businesses to study the market demand, quality of products and trade-investment policies in the respective countries, as well as seek measures to remove trade barriers and complicated administrative formalities.  Regarding agriculture and science-technology, the two sides consented to strengthening cooperation in professional research and development along with sharing expertise and supporting each other in irrigation and milk cow breeding.  After the talks, the two diplomats signed a government agreement that allows relatives of staff of diplomatic representative agencies and consulate offices of both sides to hold paying jobs in each country.  During her visit, Deputy FM Tzipi Hotovely also met with Head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for External Relations Hoang Binh Quan and Chairman of the Vietnam-Israel Parliamentary Friendship Association Tran Dinh Nha. VNA