Phnom Penh(VNA) – Rasmei Kampuchea, a newspaper with the largest readership in Cambodia,ran an article on January 10 highlighting Vietnam’s successes in multilateral diplomacyas Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc is leading a high-ranking delegation toattend the second Mekong-Lancang Cooperation (MLC) Leaders’ Meeting in PhnomPenh.

The front page article described2017 as one of the most successful years of Vietnam’s foreign affairs whichwere implemented actively and drastically in both bilateral and multilateral aspects,serving strategic targets set by the Vietnamese Party and State.

Vietnam excellently hostedthe Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Year 2017,especially the APEC Economic Leaders’ Week in the central city of Da Nang, thusaffirming the country’s role in a global-level event, the article wrote.

With the attendance ofall leaders from APEC member economies and the largest number of delegates,entrepreneurs and reporters, the APEC events turned Vietnam into the centre ofattention in the world, helping to promoting the country’s image and improvingits position and prestige in the international arena, the article stressed.

The APEC Year 2017 vividly showed that Vietnam’s multilateral diplomacy hasbeen lifted to a new height, thus effectively protecting and promoting thecountry’s strategic interests related to security and development, as well asits reputation as a responsible member of the international community.

Thesuccess of the APEC Year 2017 created a new perception, faith, strength andmomentum for Vietnam’s stronger international integration in the coming time,it said.

Thearticle also praised Vietnam’s great efforts to bolster and deepen itsrelations with countries in the region and powers in the world.

In2017, Vietnam’s senior officials paid 18 visits to foreign countries andattended eight multilateral international meetings, during which they heldhundreds of bilateral meetings with leaders of countries around the world. Atthe same time, Vietnam welcomed 36 heads of state and heads of governments ontheir visits to the country.

Throughanniversary celebrations in relations with Laos and Cambodia as well as visitsto Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand and Singapore, Vietnam strongly improvedpolitical trust and effectively boosted practical cooperationwith regional countries, it said, adding that Vietnam’s relations with its keypartners such as China, Russia, the US, Japan, and India also recorded fruitfuldevelopment in both politics and economy.

According to the article, Vietnam worked hard to foster international economicintegration. The country joined member countriesof the Trans-PacificPartnership (TPP) agreement in pursuing discussionstowards a deal pact, which is from now on calledthe Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), andpromote negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)agreement. It also joined hands with the European Union (EU)’s member nationsto accelerate the official signing of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement(EVFTA).

Vietnam’s efforts and determinationduring the year contributed to enhancing its economic relations with foreignpartners. The country reached or exceeded all economic targets set for the year,with total export-import turnover hitting 425 billion USD – the highest amountever, the article noted.-VNA