Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired the welcoming ceremony for Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.

On the morning of November 2, at the Presidential Palace, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired a solemn welcoming ceremony for Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands Mark Rutte and the Dutch High-Level Delegation on an official visit to Vietnam from November 1-2, according to the protocol reserved for heads of foreign governments on official visits to Vietnam.

This is the third time Prime Minister Mark Rutte has officially visited Vietnam since he took office as Prime Minister of the Netherlands (in 2010) and nine months after Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's official visit to the Netherlands, in the context of the two countries celebrating the 50th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations (1973-2023).

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh welcomed Prime Minister Mark Rutte with a warm hug and handshake; Hanoi students presented the Dutch Prime Minister with a bouquet of fresh flowers. The two prime ministers walked on the red carpet to the podium amid the waving of students with colorful flags and flowers in their hands.

As Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte stepped onto the podium, the national anthems of both countries were played. In a solemn atmosphere, the two leaders walked forward to salute the national flags of both countries.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh invited Prime Minister Mark Rutte to inspect the Guard of Honour of the Vietnam People's Army. The two Prime Ministers introduced to each other the members of the two countries' High-Level Delegations attending the welcoming ceremony.

At the end of the official welcoming ceremony, the two Prime Ministers returned to the podium and witnessed the welcoming parade of the Vietnam People's Army Honor Guard. Afterwards, the two Prime Ministers moved to the Government Headquarters for talks.

Before the talks, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte visited a photo exhibition about the country, people and good relations between Vietnam and the Netherlands, organized by the Government Office in coordination with the Vietnam News Agency.

Over the past 50 years, the Vietnam-Netherlands relationship has continued to develop strongly in many areas, especially investment, trade, sustainable agriculture and climate change response. The two countries established diplomatic relations as a Strategic Partnership on Climate Change and Water Management in 2010, a Strategic Partnership on Agriculture and Food Security in 2014 and a Comprehensive Partnership in 2019.

The two sides regularly exchange delegations, especially high-level delegations; maintain many bilateral cooperation mechanisms and support each other at international forums and organizations. The Netherlands is Vietnam's second largest trade partner in Europe, with a turnover of more than 11 billion USD by 2022; is the largest investor of the European Union (EU) in Vietnam with about 400 projects, total capital reaching 13.5 billion USD; is a country that provides non-refundable aid to Vietnam for many development programs and projects... Vietnam always attaches importance to and wishes to strengthen and deepen relations with the Netherlands.

The visit of Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands Mark Rutte to Vietnam this time continues specific measures to implement the results of the official visit to the Netherlands by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh in early 2023.

The two sides promote areas such as trade, investment; finance; science, technology; management science; human resource training; tourism; agriculture, logistics, Green Transformation, Digital Transformation...

Along with that, Vietnam and the Netherlands continue to effectively implement the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA); promote the development of the EU-ASEAN Strategic Partnership, for peace, stability and development of the region and the world.