3-12-2023 (HANOI) Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, on Friday for a two-day visit. During his visit, he held meetings with Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang and General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong. Both sides agreed to strengthen China-Vietnam trade relations and promote railway connectivity.
Wang Yi’s visit to Vietnam was made at the invitation of Tran Luu Quang. According to the Vietnam News Agency, when meeting with Wang Yi at the headquarters of the Communist Party of Vietnam on Friday, December 1, Nguyen Phu Trong said he believed that Wang Yi’s visit would help deepen cooperation between the two countries in various fields and move towards a more pragmatic and effective direction. He also reiterated the high importance attached to promoting China-Vietnam relations.
In response, Wang Yi expressed his strong agreement with Nguyen Phu Trong’s views on the importance and strategic significance of enhancing the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between China and Vietnam.
The Vietnamese government website later reported that the two sides discussed issues related to strengthening trade relations and promoting railway connectivity. During his visit to Vietnam last month, Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao expressed Vietnam’s willingness to promote railway interconnectivity between the two countries, as stated by Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.
Upgrading railways through the rare earth core area
Reuters reported on Friday, citing senior Vietnamese officials and diplomats, that China and Vietnam are discussing a possible major upgrade to Vietnam’s underdeveloped railway system to strengthen a railway line that passes through Vietnam’s rare earth core area and reaches the country’s major northern ports. Although China and Vietnam have already established railway connections, the existing system is outdated and has limited capacity on the Vietnamese side, making it impossible for the two countries’ systems to be interconnected. The upgraded railway will pass through the region of Vietnam with the largest rare earth deposits, and China is currently the world’s largest rare earth refining country. Vietnamese official media reported that Chinese and Vietnamese rare earth industry experts discussed strengthening cooperation in mineral processing last week.
In addition, there have been earlier reports that Chinese President Xi Jinping may visit Vietnam in mid-December, so Wang Yi’s visit is seen as preparation for the meeting between the Chinese and Vietnamese leaders.
Bloomberg reported on Thursday, November 30, citing three unnamed sources, that Chinese and Vietnamese representatives are discussing Xi Jinping’s visit to Vietnam from December 14 to 16, but the specific dates will be decided by the Chinese side. The sources said that during Wang Yi’s visit to Vietnam, he will discuss the itinerary for Xi Jinping’s first visit to Vietnam in six years with Vietnamese officials.
