On the afternoon of March 31, 2012, Vice Premier Li Keqiang met with Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai in Boao, Hainan on the sidelines of the 2012 Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference.

Li said China and Vietnam are close neighbors and important partners. The Chinese government attaches great importance to Sino-Vietnamese relations and is ready to work with the Vietnamese side to strengthen high-level exchanges and promote substantial cooperation to push forward bilateral ties. China and Vietnam should proceed from a long-term prospective and take effective measures to maintain the stable development of bilateral ties, said Li, adding both sides should appropriately handle the South China Sea issue.

The two countries are at an important developmental stage and share great potential for pragmatic cooperation, Li said, adding that they should grasp this opportunity, well implement the five-year development plan on economic and trade cooperation and further strengthen cooperation in trade, economics and culture. China will support competent companies with good credit that wish to invest in Vietnam and hopes the Vietnamese side will facilitate the process and provide favorable policies, Li said.

Hoang Trung Hai said he firmly believed that China will achieve further development and make greater contributions to world peace and development. The Vietnamese side spoke highly of the traditional friendship cultivated by the older generations of leaders of the two countries and vowed to further deepen bilateral ties.