At the online meeting (Photo: qdnd.vn)

In his opening remarks, Governor of Saint Petersburg Beglov Alexander recalled the visit of President Ho Chi Minh to Petrograd (Saint Petersburg today) in 1923, marking a new milestone in Vietnam’s struggle for independence. He said that events paying tribute to the Vietnamese national hero have been organized in the city on May 19th every year since 2018.

The governor expressed his pride for Saint Petersburg to play a crucial part in the Vietnam-Russia relations that have been built on the long-standing friendship and mutual assistance, saying the ties between Saint Petersburg and Ho Chi Minh City are growing strongly in the fields of economy, education, tourism and youth cooperation.

For his part, Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan said learning from Marxism-Leninism and October Revolution and with the help of the former Soviet Union (Russia today), Nguyen Ai Quoc, an alias of President Ho Chi Minh, had found the way to liberate Vietnamese people from the feudal regime and French colonists, win the resistance war against the US and reunite the country.

He affirmed that Vietnamese leaders and people always remembered Russia’s support for the country’s struggle for independence and national reconstruction.

According to the Secretary, Vietnam wants to lift the friendship and bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership with Russia to a new height, adding that Ho Chi Minh City and its people will do their utmost to strengthen ties with Saint Petersburg to contribute to the two countries’ relations.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Russia Ngo Duc Manh and Russian Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City Aleksey Popov also delivered remarks highlighting the role of President Ho Chi Minh in nurturing the bilateral relationship as well as directions for the bilateral ties to expand further in the future./.