OREANDA-NEWS. May 21, 2013. Belarus believes that the trade with Vietnam will be able to exceed USD500 million in the next few years. President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko made this statement as he met with Prime Minister of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam Nguyen Tan Dung.

“We produce the commodities Vietnam needs; you have a lot of goods we are interested in. Therefore, our task is to expand our trade to at least USD 500 million and more,” the head of state said.

Alexander Lukashenko emphasized that Belarus is keen to establish very close ties with Vietnam. “Cooperation with Vietnam is vitally important for us. We need you to get access to the markets of the neighboring states and third countries. This will be very beneficial for us and not detrimental for Vietnam,” the Belarusian President said.

He expressed confidence that the ongoing visit of the Vietnamese Premier to Belarus will help intensify the bilateral cooperation across all the areas. Alexander Lukashenko believes that the bilateral trade of nearly USD 200 million falls short of the cooperation potential of the two countries. “We could do much better, because Vietnam is a huge country with 90 million people. Besides, Vietnam is among the countries we have no problems with,” the head of state said. The President emphasized that there are no forbidden topics in the bilateral relations. “We do not hide it, we can cooperate in all the fields: from supplies of common consumer goods to military cooperation,” the Belarusian leader said.

The President noted that Belarus and Vietnam have absolutely no disagreements on the international agenda; the two countries always hold the same views. “We are considering your suggestions on Vietnam’s election to the elected bodies of the United Nations. Believe me, we will keep in mind that you are our friends while considering these matters,” the Belarusian head of state said.

Alexander Lukashenko emphasized that Vietnam is Belarus’ key partner in Southeast Asia for a number of reasons. “The number one reason why we treat Vietnam this way is our long-standing friendship; we have been there while you were having the hardest times,” the Belarusian President said.

”Our people know Vietnam very well and are in favor of our friendly relations. We will remain committed to this course in the future,” the President said.

Nguyen Tan Dung noted that the two countries have developed strong and long-standing bonds of friendship. He emphasized that the people of Vietnam will never forget the help Belarus offered to Vietnam in the most difficult times. “I want to assure you that the Vietnamese government and Vietnamese people have determination and political will to do their utmost to promote all-round cooperation with Belarusian friends and advance the bilateral relations to a brand new level,” the Vietnamese Prime Minister said.