Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on May 20 sent a congratulatorymessage to his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison on the successfulorganisation of the country’s recent federal election.

In hismessage, PM Phuc congratulated the victory of the coalition, which is comprisedof the Liberal Party and the National Party of Australia. He expressed hisbelief that the coalition government, under the leadership of PM Morrison, willhelp Australia obtain new achievements.

PM Phucalso vowed to closely cooperate with the Australian government and PM Morrison tofoster the Vietnam-Australia strategic partnership in the time to come.

Since theestablishment of the comprehensive partnership in September 2009, the bilateralrelations have been strengthened and developed across a range of fields in apractical and rapid manner.

Vietnam-Australiarelations were officially upgraded to a strategic partnership in March 2018,laying the foundation for the two sides to enhance mutual trust andunderstanding, thus deepening bilateral ties and contributing to peace,stability, and prosperity in the region. 

Statistics show that bilateral trade has recordedthe annual growth of 7 percent in recent years. Australia is a major providerof official development assistance for Vietnam, helping to reform the economy,improve competitiveness, and promote gender equality.–VNA