Vietnamese PM accorded ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan

New Delhi, Aug 1 (IANS) Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday.During this, PM Modi received his counterpart, and both leaders shared a warm hug as they greeted each other. After this, the Vietnamese PM inspected a Guard of Honour by the Indian defence forces.PM Modi and Pham Minh Chinh then met the ministers and delegations of the two countries.Later, Pham Minh paid his tribute to the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, at Rajghat.He will engage in bilateral discussions with PM Modi, who will also host a luncheon in honour of the visiting delegation.

Chinh reached New Delhi late on Tuesday evening for a three-day state visit, aiming to further strengthen the age-old ties between the two countries.The Vietnam PM is also scheduled to call on President Droupadi Murmu and Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar during the visit.On Wednesday, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishanakar called on the visiting Prime Minister and appreciated his guidance in bolstering the India-Vietnam bilateral relations."Honoured to call on PM Pham Minh Chinh of Vietnam during his State visit to India. Appreciate his guidance on our bilateral relationship and on regional and global issues of mutual interest," the EAM said in a post on 'X'.

The Vietnamese Prime Minister also addressed a business event organised in the national capital on Wednesday. He stated that India's interest in exploring investments in Vietnam will extend cooperation into new areas such as transportation, economy, digitalisation and energy.He also appreciated the economic and trade cooperation as a "beacon of cooperation" between the two nations and called on to raise the bilateral trade to $20 billion.He also hailed the development of India under the leadership of PM Modi.India-Vietnam relations have been on the upswing since the establishment of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during PM Modi's visit to Hanoi in 2016.

PM Modi has maintained Vietnam's importance as an important pillar of India's 'Act East' policy and the Indo-Pacific vision while seeking to enhance the scope of the bilateral relationship, including defence partnership, besides working for expeditious progress on the existing initiatives.