Bird flu claims two deaths this month
The Ministry of Health's Preventive Medicine Department has confirmed the second bird flu fatality of this year.
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Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. |
The visit, made at the invitation of Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, is expected to include discussions on ways to further develop the 60-year bilateral relationship.
Since the establishment of the diplomatic ties in 1950, the bilateral relationship has witnessed regular high-ranking visits, with Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung visiting Poland in 2007.
The two countries have signed a number of agreements creating a legal framework for co-operation in the fields of culture, sciences, judicial support, investment protection, maritime transport, agriculture and rural development.
Poland is now Viet Nam's biggest trade partner in Eastern and Central Europe. The bilateral export turnover has increased sharply from US$125 million in 2001 to $650 million in 2008.
Viet Nam has witnessed an export surplus with key commodities including garment and textiles, agricultural products and food and major imports including formula milk, pharmaceutical products, steel and iron.
After supporting Viet Nam during the country's two wars against France and the US, Poland recently provided Viet Nam with $100 million in preferential loans and is now willing to continue providing another $260 million in the form of preferential loans for building and mineral mining projects.
The European country has helped Viet Nam train experts to restore heritage sites in Hue, the Cham towers in Hoi An and the Cu Chi underground tunnels.
More than 4,000 Vietnamese students and 3,500 workers have been sent to Poland to study and for training, primarily in the building and coal mining sectors.
The Vietnamese community in Poland, which has about 3,000 people at the moment, is an important bridge between the two sides to develop their friendship and co-operative ties. — VNS
