HANOI, February 16 (RIA Novosti) - Russia is interested in energy, high-tech and investment cooperation with Vietnam, the Russian prime minister said Thursday.
"We could take part in building a nuclear power plant in Vietnam," Mikhail Fradkov told journalists after talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Phan Van Khai.
The Russian premier, who is in Vietnam on a two-day official visit, said Russia was also aiming to bid in a tender for the construction of the Shonla hydroelectric plant in the country.
The premiers also discussed the operation of a Russian-Vietnamese joint oil and gas venture, Vietsovpetro, based in the city of Vung Tau, and agreed on cooperation at the expert level to outline the enterprise's prospects after 2010.
From 1986 to late 2005, Vietsovpetro produced more than 150 million metric tons of crude on the southern Vietnamese shelf.
The parties also discussed high-tech cooperation in the space sector, the development of remote sensing systems and machine-building.
Phan Van Khai said in turn that bilateral cooperation stepped up Vietnam's industrialization and modernization.
The premier said Vietnam expected economic and investment collaboration with Russia to expand. "I hope Russian ventures will implement large-scale investment projects in Vietnam that will correspond to bilateral interests," he said.
During his visit, Fradkov is expected to meet with President Tran Duc Luong and other senior Vietnamese officials, and sign around five bilateral documents, including an agreement on the protection of intellectual property rights, and a protocol on cooperation against drug trafficking.
Russia traditionally supplies machinery and equipment, rolled metal products, non-ferrous metals and chemicals to Vietnam.
Bilateral trade between the countries was up 20% in 2005 year-on-year to $1.1 billion.
Vietnam considerably expanded its exports to Russia in 2005 compared with the previous year, whereas the number of Russian tourists visiting Vietnam hit a new record last year, reaching 23,000 Russians tourists, almost doubling the 2004 figure.
