Berlin (VNA) – Officials of the German state of Baden Württemberg🦂 expressed optimism about cooperation prospects between the state and ASEAN countries at a recent meeting with the member ambassadors of the Berlin ASEAN Committee (BAC).

Minister-President of the state Winfried Kretschmann spoke highly of ASEAN’s efforts and accomplishments in building an ASEAN Community with unity in diversity. He expressed delight at the comprehensive cooperation outcomes between the two sides, noting that the state’s Minister for Economics Nicole Hoffmeister - Kraut will lead a business delegation to Vietnam and Singapore this November to create new momentum for bilateral partnership. Meanwhile, the Minister for Economics said the state has strength in machinery and automobile manufacturing, information technology, renewable energy, and health care, describing them as promising for cooperation between the German state and ASEAN. Aside from the meeting with Baden Württemberg officials, the BAC delegation met with the chambers of commerce and industry of the state’s Karlsruhe and Stuttgart cities, and the state’s international cooperation promotion agency Baden-Württemberg International. At the working sessions, the German side highly valued the economic partnership prospect between the state and ASEAN and also voiced interest in Vietnam. Vietnamese Ambassador to Germany Doan Xuan Hung informed the hosts about the new government of Vietnam and its resolve to initiate the second wave of reforms to promote the country’s industrialisation and modernisation. This is a big opportunity for German and Baden Württemberg businesses, he stressed. On this occasion, he also met with leaders of Daimler group, which has invested in Vietnam since 1995 and has recorded rapid growth there in recent years. Baden Württemberg, the third largest state of Germany, reported a GDP of 460 billion EUR and an economic growth rate of 3.1 percent in 2015 – the fastest rate in the country, whose economy grew by 1.7 percent on average. It is also holding 30 percent of Germany’s patents and home to globally famous brands like Bosch, Daimler and SAP.-VNA