Socialist Vietnam and Venezuela, led by socialist President Hugo Chavez, have agreed to build a “strategic relationship” and to bring their economic relationships on a par with their already strong political links. The countries’ two-way trade in 2004 was only US$4.5 million. Vietnam National Assembly chairman Nguyen Van An led a delegation from March 12 to Caracas, declaring plans to collaborate with Venezuela in areas of oil and gas, wet rice planning, health care and herbal medicine production, before opening Vietnam’s embassy in Caracas. Venezuelan National Assembly chief Nicolas Maduro said there is a need to accelerate the two countries’ collaboration to make up for lost time, adding that the Venezuelan National Assembly has set up a Venezuela-Vietnam friendly parliament members’ group to help boost this process.

From Green Left Weekly, March 29, 2006.
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