Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Ha Noi, Oct. 17 (VNA) -- Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika paid an official visit to Viet Nam from Oct. 15-18 at the invitation of President Tran Duc Luong.
A communique has been released about the visit. Main excerpts are as follows:

"President Abdelaziz Bouteflika held talks with President Tran Duc Luong and had working sessions with General Secretary Le Kha Phieu of the Communist Party of Viet Nam, met with Prime Minister Phan Van Khai, Vice State President Nguyen Thi Binh and General Vo Nguyen Giap.

"President Abdelaziz Bouteflika and the Algerian delegation paid a floral tribute to President Ho Chi Minh at his Mausoleum and visited a number of economic and cultural establishments in Ha Noi and Ho Chi Minh City.

"President Tran Duc Luong and President Abdelaziz Bouteflika informed each other of the political and economic situation in their respective countries, and discussed at length the Viet Nam-Algeria relationship and international and regional issues of mutual concern. The talks took place in an atmosphere of fraternity, friendship and entirely mutual understanding.

"The two sides held that the visit to the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam by the President of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria was an event of major significance for the Viet Nam-Algeria friendship and cooperation between the two countries.

"President Tran Duc Luong warmly welcomed President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's official friendship visit to Viet Nam. He expressed admiration for the Algerian people's arduous struggle for national independence and held that the victories of the Vietnamese and Algerian peoples had made great contributions to the processes of decolonialization and liberation of oppressed nations in Africa, Asia and Latin-America.

"President Tran Duc Luong expressed his delight at the consistently stable situation in Algeria and initial achievements in socio-economic development. He welcomed and appreciated the policy of national reconciliation and concord of the Algerian Government and State initiated by President Abdelaziz Bouteflika. The Vietnamese President spoke highly of Algeria's foreign policy of independence, peace and non-alignment, as well as its achievements in external relations, which have helped restore Algeria's worthy position in the region and the world. President Luong wished the Algerian people ever greater achievements in building a prosperous and happy Algeria.

"President Tran Duc Luong, once again, expressed his deep gratitude to the State, the Government and people of Algeria for their sentiments, valuable support and assistance to the Vietnamese people's past struggle for national independence and present national construction. He reaffirmed that it was Viet Nam's consistent policy to unceasingly consolidate and develop traditional friendship and multi-faceted cooperation with Algeria.

"President Abdelaziz Bouteflika expressed his profound admiration for the Vietnamese people's struggle for national independence and unification, as well as their important achievements in the renovation process of the last 15 years. The President also highly valued Viet Nam's foreign policy of independence, sovereignty, diversification, multilateralization, and active integration into the region and the world. He said he appreciated Viet Nam's role and activities, in its capacity as President of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Standing Committee and the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), aimed at building an ASEAN of unity, cooperation, sustainable and equal development.

"The Algerian President believed that with the Vietnamese people's industriousness and creativity, and under the correct leadership of the Communist Party of Viet Nam, the Vietnamese people would achieve more and attain their goals of a rich people, a strong country, and a fair, democratic and civilized society.

"President Abdelaziz Bouteflika highly appreciated and respectfully expressed the solidarity, traditional friendship and faithfulness which have bound together the people of Viet Nam and Algeria. He affirmed Algeria's desire to strengthen friendship and multi-faceted cooperation with Viet Nam, in the interests of the two peoples, and for peace, stability, cooperation and development.

"The two sides held that the potential for economic and commercial cooperation between the two countries had not yet been fully exploited. They reached consensus in exerting joint efforts to exploit available potential with a view to expanding cooperative fields for mutual benefit and commensurate with the fine political relations between Viet Nam and Algeria. To these ends, the two sides expressed their determination to carry out their agreements, especially those reached during the visit to Algeria in December 1999 by President Tran Duc Luong.

"The two sides promised to create favourable conditions for the exchange of investment activities between the two nations, the establishment of direct relations between Vietnamese and Algerian businesses in the near future, and to encourage all forms of partnership, with a view to consolidating and expanding bilateral relations.

"The two sides affirmed their support for the right to self-determination of the Sahrawi people, the United Nations plan to hold a referendum on West Sarawe, and the full implementation of the United Nations plan to resolve the West Sahrawi issue on the basis of respect for the Sahrawi people's right for self-determination and for peace and stability in the region.

"The two sides expressed deep concern about the escalation of conflict between Palestine and Israel, which had resulted in many deaths and threatened the Middle East peace process. The two sides affirmed the Sahrawi people's right to self-determination and to declare an independent State of their own with Al-Qods as the capital, and demanded an immediate end to use of force against the Palestinian people and resumption of negotiations with a view to reaching a fair and sustainable solution to the Palestine issue. The two sides believed that peace could only be established once troops withdrew from occupied areas.

"The two sides demanded an end to military activities and the unjust embargo against Iraq. They support the re-opening of civil flights to Baghdad, considering it the first step towards completely lifting the embargo against Iraq.

"The two sides supported the Organization of African Unity (OAU)'s efforts in resolving conflicts in Africa through peaceful means and restoring peace and solidarity between African countries in the common fight against hunger, underdevelopment and diseases and fight for prosperity, solidarity and progress in Africa.

"The two sides welcomed the results of the South Summit held in Havana and agreed that the coordination of actions among developing countries in the fight against poverty and hunger, diseases and injustice, and for the target of socio-economic development, was of significance. Such coordination would help them cope with the negative effects of globalization and protect their own legitimate interests.

"The two sides applauded the United Nations Millennium Statement on basic principles in international relations and the priority given by the international community to development and poverty eradication in the next century. They also committed themselves to close coordination in the Non-Aligned Movement, and at other regional and international fora, to express their determination to join other countries to strive for a world of peace, justice and development.

"The two sides praised the fine results of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's Viet Nam visit which marked a new development in the Viet Nam-Algeria relationship and created an impetus to strengthen bilateral ties and to meet the two peoples' aspirations.

"President Abdelaziz Bouteflika expressed thanks to President Tran Duc Luong and the Vietnamese people for their courteous and warm welcome for him and his entourage during their stay in Viet Nam. He said it showed the special fraternal relationship between Viet Nam and Algeria.

"President of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria Abdelaziz Bouteflika invited President of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam Tran Duc Luong to pay an official visit to Algeria. President Tran Duc Luong accepted the invitation with pleasure. The schedule will be confirmed through diplomatic channels."