Chancellor Angela Merkel in Viet Nam (독일 메르켈 총리 베트남 방문)

 

            Hanoi, 11.10.11: Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung welcomes the Chancellor in front of the Presidential Palace with the national anthems.
Chancellor Angela Merkel has signed several German-Vietnamese agreements. They relate to trade and research, but also to development cooperation. During her trip to Asia the Chancellor will also be visiting Mongolia.

 

The agreements include a strategic partnership with Viet Nam. It embraces accords to strengthen industry, trade and investment. "I am delighted that we were able to sign the Hanoi Agreement here, on our strategic partnership," said Angela Merkel. "It puts our close cooperation on an even firmer footing." This presupposes clear legal conditions, which is why the continuation of the rule-of-law dialogue was also agreed.

 

Ho hi inh City, 12.10.11: on the second half of the Chancellor's trip to Viet Nam, the Chairman of the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City welcomes her to the largest city in the country 

 

An economy in transition

Viet Nam aims to join the ranks of the industrialised countries by 2020. Germany is its largest trading partner in the EU and aims to support the country in its endeavours. "We have an essential interest in a free trade agreement between Viet Nam and the European Union," said the Chancellor in Hanoi. The market economy status for Viet Nam will apply when the relevant criteria are met, she added. 
 
High-quality German workmanship is always of interest to Viet Nam. In 2011 alone trade in goods and services was worth almost six billion US dollars. The largest industrial project at the moment is the construction of an underground railway in Ho Chi Minh City. Viet Nam has already decided in principle to build one major underground line with German lead management, and to partly finance this too.

 

 

Ho Chi Minh City, 12.10.11: In her speech at the Business Conference Angela Merkel promised German support for a possible free trade agreement between Viet Nam and the EU 

 

More education for Viet Nam 
During her visit Angela Merkel also signed agreements on development cooperation. "We in Germany will be supporting you in particular in the field of education," said the Chancellor at the press conference. The Vietnamese-German University is a good example, she added, and the German-Vietnamese School is to be revived. In Ho Chi Minh City, Germany aims to open a German House that is also to raise the profile of German industry. 

 

Ho Chi Minh City, 12.10.11: "Education and research are issues that are particularly important for the Vietnamese," said Angela Merkel at a meeting with students at the German-Vietnamese University.

 Integration in Germany 
The Chancellor’s visit is also of interest to Vietnamese citizens living in Germany. More than 100,000 Vietnamese citizens currently live in Germany, including 4,000 students. The Chancellor promised more assistance in the form of scholarships. "We see this bridge ... partly as a cultural opportunity for our two countries to work together."

 

                                           Hanoi, 11.10.11: During her visit Angela Merkel officially opened the new production plant for infusion systems.

                                                Ho Chi Minh City, 12.10.11: Employees of the New World Hotel watch as the Chancellor leaves. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hanoi, 11.10.11: During her visit to the Temple of Literature the Chancellor met a German-Vietnamese couple who recently moved from Germany to Hanoi.