During the ceremony, the Swiss Vice President and Foreign Minister emphasized that Switzerland was one of the first Western countries to establish bilateral relations with Vietnam.
Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam Nguyen Thi Hong presents a souvenir to Swiss Vice President and Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis. (Photo: baoquocte.vn)
However, the two countries have a longer shared history than that. “A century ago, Vietnam became a destination for Swiss merchants, scientists and explorers who loved adventure,” he said, adding that for many Swiss people, Vietnam is also the Fatherland. “One of the most well-known Swiss people in Vietnam is the scientist Alexandre Yersin, the one who, from the 19th century, left Switzerland for Vietnam where he lived, did scientific research and died in Nha Trang in 1943.”
He affirmed that although the world has changed, the close ties between the two countries remain intact and are always maintained within the framework of trade exchanges.
On this special occasion, the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs supported the design and construction of the "Geneva Conference Room", located in the new building of the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to serve the work of the leading training, teaching and research in international relations. The conference room's name is Geneva, the city of Switzerland where the United Nations headquarters is located, in order to bring about an international spirit, openness and exchange like the good cooperation relationship between Vietnam and Switzerland. .
On behalf of the Government of Vietnam to attend the celebration, Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam Nguyen Thi Hong sent greetings to the Government and people of Switzerland on the occasion of the Swiss National Day, emphasizing that, after 730 years of construction and development, Switzerland has risen to become one of the countries with many outstanding achievements in economic development as well as in quality of life.
Expressing her pleasure to see Vietnam-Switzerland relations developing better and better, especially in the economic field, Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong said that with 177 direct investment projects in Vietnam and total registered capital of about USD1.9 billion, currently Switzerland ranks 20th among 140 countries and territories having direct investment capital in Vietnam.
Despite being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the total two-way turnover in 2020 reached USD863.5 million, allowing the two countries to have an optimistic view of the bright future of two-way trade when the pandemic is controlled and the global economy recovers.
According to Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong, with the support of international friends, including Switzerland, Vietnam is trying its best to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. “I hope that more and more high-level Swiss delegations as well as Swiss friends will visit Vietnam, and more and more Swiss people will connect with Vietnam,” she said./.