Hanoi (VNA) ✱– National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man has expressed his hope that parliamentary cooperation would become a key pillar in the partnership between Vietnam and Timor-Leste, via sharing experiences in law-building, supreme supervision, and decision-making on key national issues.

During a meeting with President of Timor Leste Jose Ramos-Horta in Hanoi on August 1, Man underlined Vietnam's respect and admiration for the achievements made by the State and people of Timor-Leste in their struggle for national independence in which the President was a key leader honoured with the Nobel Peace Prize in 1996. He also congratulated Timor-Leste on being accepted in principle as the 11th member of ASEAN. Praising the substantive and extensive talks between President To Lam and President Jose Ramos-Horta, Man welcomed the signing of a bilateral agreement on visa exemption for holders of diplomatic and official passports. The Vietnamese NA supports and will create a favourable legal framework to promote the signing and implementation of cooperation agreements between the two countries, he said. The top legislator of Vietnam proposed that both countries increase the exchange of all-level delegations to raise mutual understanding, cultural and people-to-people exchanges, and accelerate the organisation of the first meeting of the Vietnam-Timor-Leste Joint Commission to review, study and outline specific measures to strengthen bilateral cooperation across various fields. He also urged the two countries to promote economic and trade ties via the promotion of exports and imports of goods with high potential and demand, such as rice, apparel, footwear, beverages, and processed food. He encouraged joint work in other potential areas, including agriculture, aquaculture, oil and gas, infrastructure, education, training, and tourism. The host asked the Timor-Leste President to support delegation exchanges and experience-sharing between the two parliaments' specialised committees and parliamentarians in parliament operations and issues of common interest. He also stressed the need to offer mutual support at multilateral parliamentary forums. Ramos-Horta, in turn, stressed that Timor-Leste values and wishes to further foster its friendly relations with Vietnam, especially in agriculture to ensure food security. He expressed a desire to learn from Vietnam's experience in areas where the country holds strength. Noting the considerable potential for bilateral collaboration, the guest hoped that the Vietnamese NA would support collaborative efforts, especially in areas where Timor-Leste has specific needs./.