MFA Press Statement: Official Visit of the Chairman of the Communist Party Of Vietnam Commission For External Relations Hoang Binh Quan, 1 To 4 November 2010

The Chairman of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Commission for External Relations Hoang Binh Quan called on Minister for Foreign Affairs George Yeo this evening. During their meeting, Minister Yeo and Chairman Quan expressed satisfaction at the steadily expanding bilateral relationship. They also discussed regional and international developments. Minister Yeo congratulated Chairman Quan on Vietnam's successful ASEAN chairmanship.

Following the call, Minister Yeo and Chairman Quan jointly witnessed the signing of an agreement between the two Foreign Ministries to facilitate study visits by middle-to-senior level CPV officials. Under the three-year agreement, Singapore will host two study visits annually on Singapore's public governance, social and economic policies. The study visits will include briefings and discussions at Singapore's Civil Service College (CSC), and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKYSPP) as well as site visits.

These study visits will be organized under the framework of the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP). Since 1992, more than 11,600 Vietnamese officials have participated in various programmes in diverse fields such as English language, finance, trade promotion, information and communication technologies, urban planning, governance, public administration, law and tourism.

Earlier today, Chairman Quan visited the CSC and LKYSPP. Tomorrow, Chairman Quan will call on Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Teo Chee Hean, and be hosted to lunch by Chairman of Government Parliamentary Committee for Defence and Foreign Affairs, Michael Palmer.

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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
SINGAPORE
2 NOVEMBER 2010