I am pleased to advise that the Prime Minister of Vietnam, HE Mr Phan Van Khai, will visit Australia from 5 - 7 May 2005.
Australia's bilateral relationship with Vietnam is strong and productive. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1973, the friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and Australia have expanded in the fields of economics, trade, education, culture, development, science and technology, security and defence. In 2004, bilateral two-way trade in goods and services was $3.7 billion, more than 100,000 Australians tourists visited Vietnam, and more than 4,000 Vietnamese students were enrolled in Australian institutions.
Vietnam is a significant member of ASEAN and is Australia's country coordinator with that grouping at present. Vietnam will host APEC in 2006 prior to Australia's year.
The visit by Prime Minister Khai, his second as Prime Minister (he earlier visited in 1999), is indicative of the strong people-to-people links that exist between our countries, both at the community level and at the highest political level.
I look forward to meeting Prime Minister Khai and discussing issues of mutual interest, including in the areas of trade, security, people-to-people ties and regional cooperation.
Programme details of Prime Minister Khai's visit are now being finalised. During the trip he will visit Canberra, Brisbane and the Gold Coast.