KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Minister of Foreign Affairs Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir has expressed his satisfaction that the future of Malaysia-Vietnam relations looks very promising and that both countries will continue to engage even more closely for greater success.

In a recent interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic relationship (March 30, 1973 - 2023), he also described the deepening of bilateral relations over the past 50 years as remarkable and outstanding, saying through the years, Vietnam has emerged as one of Malaysia's closest partners, economically and socially, and that the strength of the ties was reflected by the elevation of bilateral relations to a strategic partnership in 2015.

Numerous activities have been undertaken under the ambit of the strategic partnership which are guided by the Plan of Action (POA). The first POA 2017-2019 was successfully implemented, resulting in robust and mutually-beneficial cooperation across various sectors, while the latest POA 2021 - 2025 involves new cooperation, notably in post-pandemic recovery efforts both from the economic and public health perspectives.

"Based on the inputs that I received, the POA 2021 - 2025 is progressing very well," he said.

"As we are embarking on a significant milestone this year with the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, I am confident that this historic moment will further strengthen our bilateral ties."

He affirmed that Malaysia highly values its relations with Vietnam. It is committed to cultivating close friendship and bilateral relations with Vietnam and to further expand cooperation in emerging areas of mutual interests between the two countries.

Malaysia is impressed by Vietnam's strong economic performance over the past decade, Kadir noted, adding that he believes the two countries should strengthen the economic partnership by encouraging more trade and investment flows. In this regard, Malaysia stands ready to explore together opportunities to improve market access for leading exports of both countries.

He said his country is pleased that bilateral cooperation in defence and security is advancing well. It looks forward to the renewal of the countries' memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation which expired in 2018, as the new document will enable a more focused and structured framework between the two defence establishments.

Under the overarching framework for strategic partnership, the two sides have witnessed a strong and substantive development in bilateral cooperation across multiple facets. Malaysia envisions that the framework will continue to be the pillar that guides cooperation between the two countries in the forthcoming years, according to the official.

About the most effective areas of cooperation, he perceived that the deepening of relations at all levels, including between leaders, businesses, and people-to-people, is the most effective, which is imperative as both countries embark on further efforts to improve economic gains and political cohesion for mutual benefits.

"Malaysia is pleased with the excellent state of bilateral relations with Vietnam. Our longstanding ties have gone stronger over the years. We are fully committed to strengthening the Strategic Partnership, in a pursuit of social-economic development in both countries," Kadir noted.

In the interview, he also highlighted the over 40 years of cooperation in news exchange between the Malaysian National News Agency (BERNAMA) and the VNA.

Through the news provided by BERNAMA and the VNA, peoples of both countries today are more aware of each other's demography, language, cultural elements, food, customs, and tourist places, and that they are most welcomed in each other's country.

In a nutshell, both BERNAMA and the VNA over the years have played a constructive role in fostering better understanding between the peoples of Malaysia and Vietnam, Zambry added.

-- BERNAMA