Israel–Vietnam relations
Encyclopedia
Israel–Vietnam relations are foreign relations between Israel
and Vietnam
. Vietnam and Israel established diplomatic relations on July 12, 1993. Israel opened its resident Embassy in Hanoi
in December 1993 with D. Matnai appointed as the first Ambassador to Vietnam.
. At their meeting, President
Shimon Peres
told the new ambassador: "I congratulate the Vietnamese government on their decision to establish an embassy in Israel. The establishment of an embassy opens a new era in the relationship of the two countries."
Since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two countries have frequently conducted reciprocal visits at various levels, and have strengthened ties in such fields as business, education
, culture, technological cooperation and agriculture
. The visits arranged by the Israeli government included those of delegations comprising entrepreneurs and businessmen, academic groups, journalists, artists and musicians, legal workers, and so on.
, tourism
, oil and gas exploitation and production, telecommunications, and pharmacy
. In August 2004, Israel and Vietnam signed an Agreement of Economic and Trade Cooperation, an important legal basis for the further development of trade. The two-way trade turnover has reached 70 million US dollars in 2005. Two Israeli corporations, Agronet and Astraco, have opened offices in Hanoi.
Afikim will be used in a half-a-billion-dollar milk production project in Vietnam. The project involves establishing a dairy of 30,000 cows to supply 500,000 liters of milk a day, about 40% of Vietnam's present milk consumption. Afikim will be responsible for all stages of the enterprise, including breeding and preparing land for crops that will be used as feed.
Vietnam and Israel have signed an aviation transport deal and a protocol on finance under which Israel grants a long-term credit to Vietnam. They both expect to sign an agreement on maritime transport very soon. Despite being separated by a great geographical distance, two-way trade between Vietnam and Israel increases each year. Vietnam mainly exports footwear, clothes and farm products to Israel, and imports hi-tech equipment, chemicals and fertilizers from Israel.
Currently, Israel ranks 60th among 85 foreign investors in Vietnam.
and condemned Israel for its decision to build new resettlement areas in East Jerusalem
, Vietnam News Agency
(VNA) reported, quoting the Ministry of Foreign Affair's spokeswoman Nguyen Phuong Nga as saying Friday, March 26, 2010. In response to a question about Vietnam's reaction to developments in the Middle East, Nga said: "Vietnam supports the statement released on March 19 by the Middle East Quartet (United States
, Russia
, European Union
and United Nations
) and calls for restraint from the concerned parties."
She said that Vietnam also called on both sides to avoid unilateral action that might aggravate the situation in order to create conditions for the resumption of the peace process in the Middle East. In the March 19 statement the Middle East diplomatic Quartet condemned Israel's plans to build new settler homes and said unilateral actions would not be recognised by the international community. Reports said the group "condemns Israel's decision to advance planning for new housing units in East Jerusalem." The Quartet reaffirmed that unilateral actions taken by either party cannot prejudge the outcome of negotiations and would not be recognised by the international community.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
and Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. Vietnam and Israel established diplomatic relations on July 12, 1993. Israel opened its resident Embassy in Hanoi
Hanoi
Hanoi , is the capital of Vietnam and the country's second largest city. Its population in 2009 was estimated at 2.6 million for urban districts, 6.5 million for the metropolitan jurisdiction. From 1010 until 1802, it was the most important political centre of Vietnam...
in December 1993 with D. Matnai appointed as the first Ambassador to Vietnam.
Diplomatic relations
The first Vietnamese ambassador to Israel is Dinh Xuan Luu, who presented his credentials on July 8, 2009. The ambassador operates out of an embassy in Israel, a first since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1993. The previous ambassador was a non-resident ambassador, operating from CairoCairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
. At their meeting, President
President of Israel
The President of the State of Israel is the head of state of Israel. The position is largely an apolitical ceremonial figurehead role, with the real executive power lying in the hands of the Prime Minister. The current president is Shimon Peres who took office on 15 July 2007...
Shimon Peres
Shimon Peres
GCMG is the ninth President of the State of Israel. Peres served twice as the eighth Prime Minister of Israel and once as Interim Prime Minister, and has been a member of 12 cabinets in a political career spanning over 66 years...
told the new ambassador: "I congratulate the Vietnamese government on their decision to establish an embassy in Israel. The establishment of an embassy opens a new era in the relationship of the two countries."
Since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two countries have frequently conducted reciprocal visits at various levels, and have strengthened ties in such fields as business, education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
, culture, technological cooperation and agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
. The visits arranged by the Israeli government included those of delegations comprising entrepreneurs and businessmen, academic groups, journalists, artists and musicians, legal workers, and so on.
Trade
In terms of economic cooperation, Israeli businessmen have shown considerable interest in Vietnam and organized many business trips to the country to explore investment opportunities in agriculture, aquacultureAquaculture
Aquaculture, also known as aquafarming, is the farming of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, molluscs and aquatic plants. Aquaculture involves cultivating freshwater and saltwater populations under controlled conditions, and can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is the...
, tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
, oil and gas exploitation and production, telecommunications, and pharmacy
Pharmacy
Pharmacy is the health profession that links the health sciences with the chemical sciences and it is charged with ensuring the safe and effective use of pharmaceutical drugs...
. In August 2004, Israel and Vietnam signed an Agreement of Economic and Trade Cooperation, an important legal basis for the further development of trade. The two-way trade turnover has reached 70 million US dollars in 2005. Two Israeli corporations, Agronet and Astraco, have opened offices in Hanoi.
Dairy project
Technology and know-how developed at KibbutzKibbutz
A kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
Afikim will be used in a half-a-billion-dollar milk production project in Vietnam. The project involves establishing a dairy of 30,000 cows to supply 500,000 liters of milk a day, about 40% of Vietnam's present milk consumption. Afikim will be responsible for all stages of the enterprise, including breeding and preparing land for crops that will be used as feed.
Training programs
Israel has usually taken the initiative in promoting its relations with Vietnam by sponsoring many short-term training programs for Vietnamese agriculturalists, meteorologists, health experts, trade union members, and scientists, with more than 220 scholarships granted to date. Israel has also dispatched many specialists to Vietnam to give in-service training to their Vietnamese colleagues, especially in agriculture. Government officials and professionals from various ministries in Vietnam have visited Israel to study tours as well as for trainings. Various on-the-spot courses have been conducted in various fields, such as agriculture, aquaculture, livestock, dairy milk production and education, under the auspices of MASHAV, the Israeli Center for International Cooperation.Humanitarian aid
With regard to humanitarian and philanthropic assistance, Israel donated 5,000 US dollars and 200 kg of medicines to Vietnamese victims to help them overcome the aftermath of the disastrous floods in 1995 and 1997. Israel also extended health care aids to Vietnam in terms of facilities and free-of-charge eye operations for the disadvantaged in the mountainous Northern Vietnam from 2004 to 2005.Cultural exchange
The cultural cooperation and exchange has been accentuated by encouraging the performance of Israeli artists in Vietnam, cultivating a broad interest in Israeli performing arts in areas such as dance and music. The Israeli Film Weeks, and the Israel’s participation in International Film Festivals in Hanoi are always a cornerstone in the framework of Israeli cultural activities in Vietnam.Tax agreement
The governments of Vietnam and Israel signed an agreement on double tax avoidance in Hanoi on August 4, 2009, creating a transparent and healthy legal environment for their businesses to increase transactions. Signatories to the document were Deputy Minister of Finance Tran Xuan Ha and Israeli Ambassador to Vietnam Effie Ben Matityau. They both stressed the importance of the agreement in promoting economic and trade cooperation between the two countries.Vietnam and Israel have signed an aviation transport deal and a protocol on finance under which Israel grants a long-term credit to Vietnam. They both expect to sign an agreement on maritime transport very soon. Despite being separated by a great geographical distance, two-way trade between Vietnam and Israel increases each year. Vietnam mainly exports footwear, clothes and farm products to Israel, and imports hi-tech equipment, chemicals and fertilizers from Israel.
Currently, Israel ranks 60th among 85 foreign investors in Vietnam.
Technology
A forum to further scientific andtechnological cooperation between Vietnam and Israel took place in Hanoi on January 18, 2010, drawing the participation of close to 160 businesses from both countries. Speaking at thisfirst forum of its kind in Vietnam, Vice Chairman of the Vietnam, Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) Pham Gia Tuc, stated that the Vietnamese government sees Israel as an important partner in its policyto boost multi-faceted cooperation with countries in the Middle East.Building new resettlement areas
Vietnam was worried about the rising tension in the Middle EastMiddle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
and condemned Israel for its decision to build new resettlement areas in East Jerusalem
East Jerusalem
East Jerusalem or Eastern Jerusalem refer to the parts of Jerusalem captured and annexed by Jordan in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and then captured and annexed by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War...
, Vietnam News Agency
Vietnam News Agency
Vietnam News Agency or Vietnamese News Agency is the official news agency of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.-History:*The Vietnamese News Agency was founded in 1945 shortly after the August Revolution...
(VNA) reported, quoting the Ministry of Foreign Affair's spokeswoman Nguyen Phuong Nga as saying Friday, March 26, 2010. In response to a question about Vietnam's reaction to developments in the Middle East, Nga said: "Vietnam supports the statement released on March 19 by the Middle East Quartet (United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
and United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
) and calls for restraint from the concerned parties."
She said that Vietnam also called on both sides to avoid unilateral action that might aggravate the situation in order to create conditions for the resumption of the peace process in the Middle East. In the March 19 statement the Middle East diplomatic Quartet condemned Israel's plans to build new settler homes and said unilateral actions would not be recognised by the international community. Reports said the group "condemns Israel's decision to advance planning for new housing units in East Jerusalem." The Quartet reaffirmed that unilateral actions taken by either party cannot prejudge the outcome of negotiations and would not be recognised by the international community.