Vietnam and China have signed seven important cooperation documents in the fields of railway and road transport, contributing to promoting cooperation between the two countries in transportation, according to a report released on April 15 by the Government News.

The documents were inked within the framework of General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and President of China Xi Jinping's State visit to Viet Nam from April 14-15.

In the railway sector, four documents were signed, including:

(1) A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Ministry of Construction of Vietnam and the National Development and Reform Commission of China on the establishment of a Vietnam–China Joint Railway Cooperation Committee to accelerate project implementation.

(2) The minutes of the working session between the Ministry of Construction of Vietnam and the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA) regarding field surveys and technical support for preparing a feasibility study report on the investment project for the Lao Cai–Hanoi–Hai Phong railway line in Vietnam.

(3) An exchange letter on China's provision of technical support for planning standard-gauge railway routes: Dong Dang–Hanoi and Mong Cai–Ha Long–Hai Phong.

(4) An exchange letter on China's provision of technical support for preparing a feasibility study report on the investment project for the Lao Cai–Hanoi–Hai Phong standard-gauge rail line.

These railway-related documents play a significant role in accelerating the preparation of railway projects connecting Vietnam and China—an issue that has received great attention from the leaders of both Parties and Governments in recent times.

For road transport, three documents were signed, including:

(1) An agreement between the two governments on jointly developing a cross-border transportation project at the Thanh Thuy (Vietnam)–Tianbao (China) international border gate area;

(2) A protocol between the two governments on simplifying import and export procedures at the Thanh Thuy–Tianbao international border gate for personnel, vehicles, construction equipment, and building materials involved in the joint construction of the cross-border transportation project

(3) A MoU on technical cooperation in road transport between Vietnam's Ministry of Construction and China's Ministry of Transport.

The two documents on the construction of cross-border transportation infrastructure will serve as an important legal foundation for Vietnam's northern province of Ha Giang and China's Yunnan province to implement investment and construction of a cross-border transport project at the Thanh Thuy–Tianbao international border gate area.

It is expected to promote goods trade and meet the growing travel demand for local people at these two localities, in particular, and between the two nations, in general, via Thanh Thuy–Tianbao international border gate pair.