Ambassador of Vietnam to Bangladesh Nguyen Manh Cuong on Saturday said Vietnam has been and will always be a good friend of Bangladesh.

"The government and people of Vietnam always keep in our hearts and greatly value the invaluable support that the government and people of Bangladesh have extended to Vietnam from the past to the cause of national building and development at present," he said.

The Ambassador was speaking at a reception marking the National Day of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam held in a Dhaka hotel in the evening.

Agriculture Minister Dr Mohammad Abdur Razzaque attended the function as the chief guest.

The two economies are on the right track for the continued growth to pursue the target of 2 billion USD as committed by the leaders of both countries, said the Vietnam Ambassador.

Last year, the bilateral trade volume reached nearly 1.5 billion USD.

In the first half of 2023, the trade volume reached nearly 554.8 million USD.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Bangladesh.

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Since the beginning of 2023, the Embassy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh have carried out many "meaningful" activities to commemorate this milestone, said the Ambassador.

In May, the second session of Political Consultations between the two Foreign Ministries was successfully organized with great outcomes.

"I strongly believe that both countries still have many great potentials that could be explored to further foster the bilateral partnership in the coming time," said Ambassador Cuong.

In the near future, he said, the two countries will exchange high-level visits between the two countries.

The success of these visits will greatly strengthen the close friendship and contribute to the new developments of the bilateral relations between the two countries, the envoy mentioned.

Over the past 78 years, under the visionary leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the Vietnamese people have tirelessly strived to defend independence, sovereignty, unity, territorial integrity, to preserve self-determination of the nation and freedom, happiness of the people, the Ambassador said.

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These achievements cannot be obtained without the support and cooperation of other countries and all friends around the world, he said.

Bangladesh and Vietnam share a history of fighting for national liberation and now have many things in common in the process of economic development that both countries can mutually share experiences, learn and support each other, said the Ambassador.

Over the past 50 years of traditional friendship, he said, the two countries have been closely cooperating in many fields, especially in economics and trade.

Moreover, the envoy said, both countries also have close cooperation at regional and international forums.

Read more: Bangladesh keen for better trade and investment relations with Vietnam

"We extend mutual support in favor of each country’s candidature at international forums," he added.