Tiếng Việt
On the afternoon of April 18, at the headquarters of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong had a meeting with Mr. Konstantin V. Vnukov – Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador and Trade Representatives of Russia in Vietnam.
Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong and Mr. Konstantin V. Vnukov at the meeting
The meeting was also attended by the leaders of the International Cooperation Department, General Department of Fisheries, Department of Enterprise Management, Department of Plant Protection and relevant units under MARD.
The Russian ambassador expressed his satisfaction with the diplomatic relations between Russia and Vietnam, especially in the field of agriculture and affirmed the important role of agricultural cooperation in the relationship between the two countries. In 2018, Russia planned many important meetings, most notably such as Russia’s visit by the General Secretary of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong next fall. One of the objectives of this visit will be to reach a Russia – Vietnam commitment to the livestock sector. 2018 will be the year of Russian culture in Vietnam and vice versa, with the aim of exchanging not only cultural fields but also in many other fields, including agriculture.
In the past two years, Russian agriculture achieved remarkable results, most importantly, Russia from an importer of agricultural products has become an exporter of animal products. This result is due to the European economic sanctions against Russia and the policy changes in the agricultural sector, which help Russian achieve the highest agricultural production in history. In 2017, Russia’s grain output reached 136 million tonnes and 2018 forecasted to reach over 150 million tonnes.
Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong said that the prospects for Vietnam-Russia relations are particularly promising, not only in the fields of economic and cultural development and but also in the international level of leaders and people of the two countries. In recent years, mutual investment has been complementary, especially in agriculture. Vietnam is very interested in Russia’s wheat, with an annual output of more than 100 million tonnes, along with potatoes, beef, sturgeon and other cold-water fish. In return, Vietnamese agricultural products such as coffee, cashew nuts, pangasius, and shrimp are loved by Russian consumers. The Minister proposed to study the market carefully because both Russia and Vietnam are big, densely populated and high-volume markets. The potential is huge but there are obstacles. Quarantine procedures of animals and plants of both countries are difficult and need to changing.
According to the Russian trade representative in Vietnam, despite many difficulties and problems in the veterinary quarantine and certification for export and import businesses of the two countries, he believed in increasing cooperation and desired to receive the support of Vietnam.
Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong expressed sympathy for the economic embargo of Europe for Russia today. The two countries need to pay more attention to the agricultural sector in order to properly assess the sector in which each side should promote cooperation. The minister said he would accelerate the import of potatoes from Russia in the near future. In addition, the Minister asked the units under the Ministry to explore areas such as fertilizer, chemicals, wheat, wheat, potatoes, cold water creatures; businesses can participate in this field; organizing scientific seminars and training. Thereby, on the basis of specific commitments, both countries can sign cooperation agreements in the coming visit of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.
Source: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
