Bangkok (VNA) – Cooperation among Vietnamese and Thai localities and people-to-people exchange are the foundations for long-lasting Vietnam-Thailand relations, Vietnamese Ambassador to Thailand Pham Viet Hung affirmed during his working trip to some provinces in the Northeast of Thailand from October🌳 7-10.

Meeting with the Vietnamese communities of Ubon Ratchathani, Amnat Charoen and Yasothon provinces, the ambassador expressed his delight at the stable life of Vietnamese here, contributing to the development of the host country and the Vietnam-Thailand relations. "It’s also so great to see Vietnamese people in Thailand preserving the fine traditions and cultural values of the Vietnamese people," he said. During the working trip, Ambassador Hung met and worked with the Governor of Ubon Ratchathani province and the acting Governor of Nakhon Phanom province as well as the provincial administrative agencies. At the meetings, Hung assessed that the Vietnam-Thailand relations are developing well, with cooperation between the two countries’ localities and people-to-people exchange as the foundations for the relations. Knowing that Ubon Ratchathani and Nakhon Phanom provinces have many cooperative activities with Vietnamese localities in trade, tourism and education, the ambassador affirmed that the embassy is always ready to act as a bridge to promote the cooperation. On this occasion, he thanked the people and authorities of the two provinces for creating favourable conditions for the Vietnamese community to stabilise their lives, increasingly integrate in the local societies nd contribute to the development of the provinces. Supasit Kocharoenyot, Governor of Ubon Ratchathani province, said that the province has signed cooperation agreements with Vietnam’s Quang Nam and Quang Tri provinces, and has many cooperation and exchange activities with other localities in Vietnam such as Kon Tum and Thua Thien - Hue. He also said that many businessmen of Vietnamese origin are contributing to the province's economy. In the future, the province plans to organise meetings between Thai and Vietnamese businessmen to boost connections. In addition, Ubon Ratchathani Royal University has also signed cooperation agreements with universities in Vietnam. They regularly organise sports and cultural exchanges. Ranida Luengthitisakul, acting Governor of Nakhon Phanom province, said that the Vietnamese community is a large foreign community in the province. The Thai - Vietnamese Association of the province has also made important contributions to the development of the province, she said, adding the President Ho Chi Minh Memorial built by the Vietnamese community in the province has become a tourist attraction. The provincial leader said that Nakhon Phanom has cooperative activities with Vietnamese localities in tourism, education, import and export. In particular, Nakhon Phanom University has signed cooperation deals with many universities in Vietnam, most recently Vinh University and Ha Tinh University. Over the past 20 years, the school has received nearly 1,000 Vietnamese students./.