British PM visits Vietnam with focus on trade cooperation

Visiting British Prime Minister David Cameron met with Vietnamese leaders on Wednesday in capital Hanoi with discussions focused on trade and economic ties.

Speaking at the meeting with Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang, Cameron said the planned Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the European Union (EU) and Vietnam has a crucial role in consolidating trade and economic relations between Vietnam and Britain, reported Vietnam's state-run news agency VNA.

The stable investment climate in Vietnam will create favorable conditions for foreign enterprises to land their investment in the country, Cameron said, hoping that two sides will further cooperation to attract more investments.

The Vietnamese president expressed his belief that trade relations between the two countries will be lifted up when Vietnam and the EU signs their FTA.

At the meeting with General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong, Cameron said British government treasures ties with Vietnam and considers Vietnam one of its important partners.

The two sides identified economic-trade and investment links as a focus of the bilateral relationship and stressed the need to intensify ties between political parties and legislatures.

The British leader said ties between the two countries will further develop in the coming time for mutual interests and for peace, stability and cooperation in the region and the world, reported VNA.

Cameron is visiting Vietnam from Wednesday to Thursday. This is the first trip of Cameron outside Europe after a general election in May.

Also on the same day, the British prime minister held talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung.