Australian Governor-General pays state visit to Vietnam amid strenghthened ties

Governor-General of Australia Peter Cosgrove and his wife touched down in Hanoi on Wednesday for a state visit as part of the celebration of 45 years of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Australia.

The three-day visit follows the signing of strategic partnership between the two countries in March, and will highlight the growing ties underpinned by strong education, business and defense, the Australian embassy in Hanoi said in a statement.

Cosgrove will meet members of the Australian community before receiving a ceremonial welcome by President Tran Dai Quang. He will also meet with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Party Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, and top legislator Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.

He and his wife, Lady Cosgrove, will visit the Military Hospital 175 and RMIT University in Ho Chi Minh City on Friday to discuss educational cooperation.

Vietnam and Australia established diplomatic relations in 1973. PM Phuc and his counterpart Malcolm Turnbull upgraded their ties to strategic partnership during Phuc's visit to Australia, where they said the partnership would contribute to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region as well as the world.

In 2017, Australia was Vietnam's eighth largest trade partner, while Vietnam was Australia's 14th largest, according to Vietnam's customs data. Bilateral trade increased 22.7 percent from the previous year to $6.45 billion in 2017. Vietnam's main exports to Australia include machinery and parts, electronic equipment, footwear, textiles and seafood, while it imports mostly metals, coal, wheat and cotton from Australia.