Vietnam congratulates Philippines on Independence Day

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc met Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte in Singapore on April 27 on the sidelines of the 32nd ASEAN Summit (Photo: VNA)   Hanoi (VNA) – President Tran Dai Quang and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on June 12 sent congratulatory messages to Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on the country’s 120th Independence Day (June 12). On this occasion, Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh also extended a message of congratulations to Alan Peter Cayetano, Secretary of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines. Vietnam and the Philippines established diplomatic relations on July 12, 1976. In late 2015, the two countries signed an agreement to elevate bilateral ties to the level of strategic partnership. In recent years, Vietnam and the Philippines have witnessed progress in bilateral relations. Two-way trade surpassed 4 billion USD in 2017, an annual increase of 25 percent.-VNA