Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (first left) addresses the Vietnam - Czech Business Forum on April 21. (Photo: VNA)

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh made the statement at the Vietnam - Czech Business Forum organised by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) in collaboration with the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Vietnam and the Czech Chamber of Commerce (CCC) held in Hanoi on April 21.

Vietnam is committed to creating the best business environment in accordance with Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) standards which include maintaining socio-political and macroeconomic stability; removing bottlenecks in the economy in terms of legal institutions, infrastructure and human resources; developing supply chains and reducing transaction costs, especially logistics and administrative costs.

In his remarks, the PM highlighted the friendship and traditional cooperation between Vietnam and the Czech Republic over the past 70 years. Despite being heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic, trade and investment cooperation between the two countries is still vigorously developing with impressive results, he noted.

Last year, the bilateral trade turnover increased by 15% year on year to 848 million USD. The Czech Republic is now one of the most important trading partners of Vietnam in Central and Eastern Europe. In the term of investment, the Czech Republic has 41 projects in Vietnam with a total registered investment capital of about 92 million USD, ranking 49 out of 141 countries and territories that have direct investment in the Indochinese state, Chinh said.

The Vietnamese leader attributed these achievements to the good friendship between the two countries and the two peoples; the support and attention of the two governments; and the consensus of the business communities of the two parties.

He noted that in the process of construction, national development and international integration, Vietnam welcomes the active participation of foreign investors, including companies from the Czech Republic.

Recognised by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) as one of the 20 most attractive investment destinations in the world, Vietnam believes that Czech companies will achieve more success in the Southeast Asian country.

The Vietnamese Government is committed to continuing to work closely with the Czech Government, increasing the exchange of experiences in areas of potential and mutual interest, such as energy, environment, science and technology, education and travel, Chinh reaffirmed.

For his part, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala stated that Vietnam is an important partner of the Czech Republic in Southeast Asia.

Currently, many Czech companies are investing very efficiently in Vietnam, he said, adding that his country has a number of advantages in areas such as the energy transition, healthcare, research and innovation.

By joining the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), the two sides will make good use of the advantages provided by that agreement to promote stronger economic and trade cooperation, he added.

At the forum, the two PM witnessed the signing cooperation agreements and memorandums of understanding of their businesses.

They included the Memorandum of Understanding between Armex Group and Petrovietnam Power Corporation on the promotion of cooperation, and the collaboration agreement between Czech F AIR and Vietjet Air on training commercial pilots./.