HANOI, April 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping's just-concluded state visit to Vietnam has achieved fruitful outcomes, with a series of agreements poised to inject strong impetus into practical cooperation between the two countries, a Vietnamese economist said Sunday.
The outcomes of last week's visit will elevate Vietnam-China relations to a new level in political mutual trust, economic cooperation and people-to-people exchanges, said Vo Dai Luoc, former head of the Institute of World Economics and Politics under the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences.
During the visit of Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, the two sides issued a joint statement and signed 45 cooperation documents, covering connectivity, artificial intelligence, customs inspection and quarantine, agricultural trade, culture and sports, people's well-being, human resources development and media, and more.
The signing of these documents will bolster strategic trust and expand practical cooperation, Luoc told Xinhua in an interview.
In their joint statement, the two sides agreed to implement in earnest the cooperation plan on synergizing the Belt and Road Initiative and the Two Corridors and One Economic Circle strategy.
Luoc said the high-level consensus opens up vast potential for future strategic cooperation between the two countries.
As bilateral cooperation documents are gradually implemented, Vietnam-China relations will enter a more mature and stable stage of development, the economist said, adding this will not only be reflected in policy coordination and high-level exchanges, but also be increasingly felt in the daily lives of the two peoples.
During the visit, the two countries launched the China-Vietnam railway cooperation mechanism, which is expected to assist Vietnam in aligning its railway gauge with China's standardized gauge, thereby boosting economic connectivity and development.
Emphasizing the importance of railway cooperation with China in Vietnam's future development, Luoc said the mechanism will not only improve transportation infrastructure in northern Vietnam and enhance logistics efficiency, but also strengthen economic linkages between Vietnam and Southwest China.
This will play a vital role in promoting bilateral trade and regional connectivity, the expert added.
In recent years, frequent high-level exchanges have enhanced political mutual trust between Vietnam and China, with economic cooperation deepening and people-to-people ties growing stronger, the economist noted.
In the context of a complex and ever-changing international situation, boosting cooperation across multiple fields not only serves the common interests of the two peoples, but also demonstrates the shared responsibility of the two countries in addressing global challenges and promoting regional peace and development, Luoc said.
Looking to the future, the expert expressed the hope that Vietnam and China will strive for mutual benefit and win-win cooperation, ensure the effective implementation of joint projects and bring concrete benefits to the two peoples. ■