Lalitpur [Nepal], August 25 : Vietnamese Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan visited the UNESCO World Heritage sites in Kathmandu and Lalitpur as she wraps up her three-day visit to the Himalayan Nation.
Vice President Xuan toured the Bouddhanath Stupa and the Patan Durbar Square on the last day of her visit to Nepal.
On the occasion, the Mayor of Lalitpur Metropolitan City, Chiri Babu Maharjan, welcomed the visiting dignitary and presented her with a souvenir as a token of friendship. The visiting deputy-head from the Southeast Asian nation toured the Patan Museum and the Bouddhanath Stupa.
Earlier in the day, the Vietnamese Vice President Xuan met President Ramchandra Paudel at the official residence, Sheetal Niwas, earlier in the morning.
During the meeting, President Paudel said there was vast potential to expand bilateral economic ties in trade, tourism, investment, and technology transfer between the two countries.
"Nepal is keen to accelerate bilateral cooperation for this," Kiran Pokharel, press adviser to President Paudel, quoted him as saying. The President added that Nepal is focusing on economic and social transformation through investment in agriculture, tourism, manufacturing, and hydropower.
He praised Vietnam for transforming itself into one of the world's most dynamic economies. Paudel also highlighted Buddhism as a strong cultural bridge between the two nations, saying it was encouraging that a large number of Vietnamese see Lumbini as a sacred place to visit once in their lifetime.
Vietnamese Vice President Xuan noted Nepal's goal of becoming a middle-income country by 2030 and Vietnam's aim of attaining high-income status by 2045, stressing the need to build a broader cooperation framework between the two countries before 2030.
She said there was scope for cooperation in culture, sports, and tourism, and lauded Nepal's role in promoting peace and its commitments on climate change.
Earlier on Sunday, Vice President Ramsahaya Prasad Yadav also held talks with his Vietnamese counterpart. The two leaders reviewed bilateral ties since establishing diplomatic relations in 1975 and emphasised the importance of 2025, which marks the 50th anniversary of relations.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, they agreed to hold the first meeting of the Bilateral Consultation Mechanism soon and discussed strengthening cooperation in trade, investment, and connectivity, including the possibility of a direct air link.
Later in the day, Xuan called on Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli at Singha Durbar. According to Oli's chief adviser, Bishnu Prasad Rimal, the two leaders discussed expanding ties at government-to-government, business-to-business, and people-to-people levels and stressed the need to deepen diplomatic and cultural engagement.
On Saturday, Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba called on the visiting vice president and sought her help to initiate flights from Vietnam to the Gautam Buddha International Airport in Bhairahawa and the Pokhara International Airport.
The visit comes as Nepal and Vietnam mark five decades of diplomatic relations. Both countries have long cooperated in multilateral forums such as the Non-Aligned Movement and the Group of 77. Vice President Xuan is scheduled to return to Hanoi on Monday.