Assistant to the Vietnamese Foreign Minister Do Hung Viet (R) receives Minister of State at the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs Colm Brophy. Photo: baoquocte.vn

Ireland always attaches importance to developing relations with Vietnam, especially in the context that the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) has come into effect, visiting Minister of State at the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs Colm Brophy told Assistant to the Vietnamese Foreign Minister Do Hung Viet at a meeting in Hanoi.

According to VNA, Brophy expressed a desire to strengthen cooperation with Vietnam in politics and diplomacy at multilateral forums, and in areas where the two sides have strengths and potential.

He spoke highly of the effective implementation of development aid projects funded by Ireland in localities of Vietnam.

For his part, Viet affirmed that Vietnam also treasures and wishes to strengthen its friendship and cooperation with Ireland.

Both sides expressed their delight at the fruitful developments of the Vietnam-Ireland relationship in politics - diplomacy, trade - investment, education, and development cooperation.

They agreed to strengthen coordination between the two foreign ministries in order to tighten political and economic ties; expand cooperation in priority areas such as climate change adaptation, renewable energy and hi-tech agriculture development, innovation, development cooperation, education - training, people-to-people exchange.

On the occasion, the two sides exchanged views on a number of regional and international issues of common concern.

Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Lan and Mr. Colm Brophy signed a memorandum of understanding in the presence of delegates.

The same day, the Vietnam National University of Agriculture received Brophy and John McCullagh, Ambassador of Ireland to Vietnam, together with a delegation of high-ranked leaders, reported Vietnam Agriculture Newspaper.

Speaking at the meeting, Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Lan, rector of the Vietnam National University of Agriculture, said more than 250 Vietnamese students have received scholarships from the Irish Government to study in Ireland so far.

To the Vietnam National University of Agriculture, the cooperation with Ireland has only been established in recent years, but has achieved many remarkable results. Specifically, the University has signed Memorandums of Understanding with leading Irish universities such as University of Cork in 2015 and National University of Ireland Galway in 2018.

From these MoUs, its units have connected and developed a proposal for cooperation with Irish professors within the framework of the Vietnam Ireland Bilateral Education Exchange (VIBE) programme that is supported with non-refundable aid from Irish Embassy.

VIBE programme aims to contribute to Vietnam’s socioeconomic development priorities by encouraging mutually beneficial development links between Vietnam and Ireland, with particular reference to third-level education and research cooperation.

Brophy expressed his pleasure to see the growing cooperation between the University of Ireland and Vietnamese universities in general and the Vietnam National University of Agriculture in particular.

According to him, Ireland has a great advantage in the field of agri-food. “We have many advantages to support Vietnam in this field,” said Brophy, emphasizing that the Vietnam National University of Agriculture has become an important partner of Ireland for many years.

On this occasion, the Vietnam National University of Agriculture proposed to the Irish Government to support training human resources in innovation, commercializing agricultural technology and offering scholarships for students.

Brophy also met with the Minister for Ethnic Minorities to discuss the two sides' continued support for ethnic minorities and other vulnerable groups.

Minister of State at the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs Colm Brophy visits a primary school in the Gio Linh district. Children learn how to deal with the unexploded mortar rounds which are common here. Irish Aid supports the clearance of unexploded ordnance from thousands of hectares per year in Quang Tri province. Source: @brophytalks

Later, the Minister travelled to Quang Tri province in central Vietnam to see the impact of Government of Ireland supported projects in the province.

Quang Tri province is a key partner in Ireland’s development assistance programme in Vietnam, and together with local government and our partner @planinternational we provide support to the most vulnerable, including ethnic minority communities.

The province suffered significantly during the flooding in 2020 following which the Embassy adopted its approach to provide urgent humanitarian support and funding towards climate resilience and rebuilding in the province.

Minister of State at the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs Colm Brophy lay a wreath and sound the memorial bell at Truong Son National Cemetery where 10.263 country-wide martyrs fell down for national protection and independence. Source: @brophytalks

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