China, Vietnam vow more substantial progress in joint maritime cooperation

China and Vietnam on Monday vowed to jointly promote their cooperation in areas including maritime, onshore and finance, and achieve more substantial progress. The pledge came out of a meeting between Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and visiting President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan. Li said he hoped the two sides would give full play of mechanisms such as the guiding committee for bilateral cooperation and three working groups on joint maritime development, infrastructure and financial cooperation, to achieve substantial progress. The establishment of the three working groups was a consensus reached by China and Vietnam during Li's visit to the country in November of last year, which was important breakthrough for the two countries on their way to peacefully handle maritime disputes. Li called on the two countries to push forward joint development of larger scale in the South China Sea, appropriately handle disputes through negotiation and consultation, and maintain the peace and stability of the South China Sea with common efforts. For his part, Nhan said the Vietnamese side will work with China to fully implement the consensus they already reached, and promote their maritime, onshore and financial cooperation to score more concrete achievements. With regard to the China-Vietnam relations, Li spoke highly of the "positive progress" the two countries have made. He said China will handle relationship with Vietnam from a strategic view, and work with it to promote a sound and stable development of bilateral ties. Nhan said the Vietnamese party and government attached high importance to relationship with China, which is a priority of Vietnam's foreign policy. China's development provides opportunities for Vietnam. He also vowed to further enhance bilateral exchanges on national governance and promote development of bilateral ties. Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) Yu Zhengsheng also held talks with Nhan on Sunday.