Germany is willing to increase its development aid to Vietnam and help the Southeast Asian nation in finance, science and technology, Minister of Economics and Technology Philipp Roesler said. Mr. Roesler made the commitment at a meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in Hanoi on Sept 18. He also emphasized that Germany supports Vietnam in boosting comprehensive co-operation with the European Union (EU) and speeding up the approval of the Vietnam-EU free trade agreement. Mr Roesler’s visit to Vietnam aims to further strengthen the relationship between the two countries in all fields, especially economics, trade, investment, and education and training, he added. For his part, Mr. Dung expressed his delight at the development of the relationship between the two countries in politics, economy, trade and investment, education and training, and culture. He also suggested that the two sides step up the implementation of the agreed projects, such as the metro line No.2 in HCM City, the German House and the Vietnam-Germany University and German International School, as part of efforts to boost the effectiveness of cooperation between the two countries. Germany has been a major provider of official development assistance (ODA) for Vietnam over the years, contributing a total of more than EUR1 billion to Vietnam’s socio-economic development projects. (nhandan.com.vn Sept 19, Tuoi Tre –Youth Sept 19 p1, An Ninh Thu Do – Capital Security Sept 19 p2)
