Joyce doesn t deserve to be deputy pm

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam speaks at the meeting. (Photo: SGGP)

The Deputy PM stressed in his statement at a working session between the National Steering Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control and HCMC leaders on April 23.

At the working session

Director of the Department of Health Nguyen Tan Binh speaks at the event.

Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Nguyen Thanh Phong proposes the Government to allow the city to actively mobilize resources and funds for the purchase of Covid-19 vaccine.

By Thanh An – Translated by Kim Khanh

Vietnamese Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính (left) and Indonesian President Joko Widodo had talks on Friday at the Bogor Presidential Palace in Indonesia. — VNA/VNS Photo Dương Giang

HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính on Friday paid a visit to Indonesian President Joko Widodo as he was visiting the country ahead of the highly-anticipated ASEAN Leaders’ Meeting on Saturday.

This was the first foreign trip and first in-person diplomatic meeting with another head of state for the newly-elected Vietnamese Government leader, while Chính was also the first ASEAN head of state to arrive in Indonesia for the summit.

Joko Widodo welcomed and congratulated Chính for having earned the confidence of the National Assembly of Việt Nam to elect him to lead the Government, expressed admiration for Việt Nam’s achievements in the prevention and control of the COVID-19 pandemic, along with economic recovery and development efforts.

The Indonesian leader affirmed that Indonesia attaches great importance to relations with Việt Nam and wishes to elevate the traditional friendship and strategic partnership to new heights.

PM Chính commended Indonesia’s efforts in containing the coronavirus outbreaks and expressed his confidence that the country would soon prevail against the challenges and continue socio-economic development in the realisation of the Vision of Indonesia 2045.

The Vietnamese PM shared with President Joko Widodo some highlights of the results of the 13th National Party Congress of the Communist Party of Việt Nam, the major orientations of the development plan for the 2021-25 period with a vision towards 2030-45, affirming that Việt Nam continues to pursue a foreign policy of independence, autonomy, multilateralisation and diversification, proactively integrating into the world in a comprehensive and extensive manner. Particularly, Việt Nam attaches great importance to consolidating and expanding cooperative relations with other countries in the region, including Indonesia.

Reflecting on the history of close relations between the two countries, PM Chính and President Widodo emphasised the importance and special meaning of the Việt Nam-Indonesia Strategic Partnership, the foundation of which was laid by the two countries’ respective founders, President Hồ Chí Minh and President Soekarno, and one that has been cultivated robustly by both sides’ leadership and people over the past 65 years.

The two sides noted with pleasure how the bilateral cooperation has been getting more profound, with growing political trust and increasingly effective economic, trade, and investment.

Regarding the orientation for promoting bilateral relations, the two leaders agreed to strengthen exchanges at high-level and at all levels and channels in a flexible manner, effectively implementing bilateral cooperation mechanisms and agreements, especially the Strategic Partnership Action Plan for 2019-23 and Joint Vision Statement between the Ministry of National Defence of the Socialist Republic of Việt Nam and the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Indonesia on Defence Activities Cooperation towards 2017-22.

Việt Nam and Indonesia pledged to continue to facilitate businesses, promote trade, and soon resume flight routes at an appropriate time; strive to soon bring bilateral trade turnover to US$10 billion with trade balance and recovery and post-pandemic sustainable economic development in mind; and address all problems arising in the spirit of the Strategic Partnership and mutual benefits.

PM Chính and Indonesian President Widodo at the Bogor Presidential Palace on Friday. — VNA/VNS Photo Dương Giang

Regarding PM Chính’s request to enable easier access for Vietnamese fruit to the Indonesia market, the Indonesian President said he would direct relevant agencies to review the issue.

The two sides have also shared experience and lessons in combating the pandemic, expressed commitment on further cooperation in healthcare and vaccine production and biopharmaceuticals.

Both leaders affirmed that they attach special importance to the need to soon complete the negotiation on the boundary of the exclusive economic zone between the two countries to create a legal corridor for the two sides to strengthen cooperation and reduce cases of illegal fishing, creating a model for settling differences at sea among nations, contributing to peacekeeping, cooperation and development in the region.

Both sides affirmed that they will continue to cooperate closely and effectively at regional and international forums, especially in ASEAN, APEC and the United Nations; agreed to work together with other ASEAN member states to constantly strengthen solidarity and promote ASEAN’s centrality in regional strategic issues, including the East Sea (known internationally as the South China Sea) issue; closely coordinate in the implementation of the Declaration of the Conduct (DOC) of Parties in the South China Sea and negotiations towards an effective and working Code of Conduct (COC) in accordance with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

PM Chính and President Widodo agreed on the special importance of the ASEAN Leaders’ Meeting in Jakarta on Saturday, the first ever face-to-face meeting of ASEAN in over a year, as an opportunity for the leaders to exchange development orientations of the ASEAN Community as well as the discussions of emerging international and regional issues that have a direct impact on ASEAN, including the Myanmar crisis, with the aim of stabilising the situation, reducing casualties, resuming dialogues between relevant parties in search of peaceful measures to maintain stability, peace in the region and in the world.

PM Chính has invited Indonesian President to visit Việt Nam at an appropriate time and the latter gladly accepted the invitation. — VNS

The Vietnamese delegation (left) and Indonesian delegation had talks on Friday at the Bogor Presidential Palace in Indonesia. — VNA/VNS Photo Dương Giang

The government had completed last year the selection of contractors for the three sections in the central provinces of Ha Tinh, Khanh Hoa and Binh Thuan. The plan was to sign contracts by the end of this month so construction could begin in June.

But the projects are stuck in negotiations, with the government and contractors yet to agree on when and how much the government will contribute, whether the government will share losses if revenues fall below projections, and whether the contractors can receive advances to kickstart construction.

Nguyen Viet Huy, deputy head of the public-private partnership (PPP) agency under the Ministry of Transport, said that the law requires contractors to pay for the construction first and the government to do its part when the work is done.

However, the contractors say that a PPP contract is a risk-sharing deal between them and the government with both sides making matching contributions.

If the government only pays up after construction is done, the contractors will face many challenges in accessing credit, with banks worried that that thegovernment’s disbursement will be delayed.

Some contractors want the government to pay interest if it is slow in disbursing funds, but current regulations don’t cover this issue.

One of the contractors, the Deo Ca Group, said there were issues with the risk-sharing mechanism. The law requires that if project revenue exceeds the amount agreed on, contractors will have to share the excess amount with the government.

But there is no regulation on what happens if the revenue is lower than the agreed amount, said Tran Van The, deputy chairman of Deo Ca Group.

Without a fair mechanism on risk sharing the contractors will be disadvantaged, he added.

The contractors also noted that their peers working on the public invested North-South Expressway sections were receiving around 30 percent of contract value in advance, while this was being denied under the PPP model.

Tran Chung, chairman of the Vietnam Association of Road Traffic Investors (VARSI), proposed that contractors receive the advance they need to prepare for building the roads.

A transport ministry spokesman said that the two sides have acknowledged issues and were continuing negotiations, hoping to finalize at least two this month.

The three sections are: the 49-kilometer Dien Chau – Bai Vot section in Ha Tinh; the 49-kilometer Nha Trang – Cam Lam section in Khanh Hoa; and the 79-kilometer Cam Lam – Vinh Hao section in Binh Thuan.

They are part of the 11 sections that make up the northern cluster of the North-South Expressway , a top priority national project in upgrading Vietnam’s infrastructure.