Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


Vietnam top leader To Lam arrives in China, set to meet Xi Jinping

by Reuters

   BEIJING --

   Vietnam's top leader, To Lam, arrived in China on Sunday for a
   three-day visit, according to Chinese state media, which Beijing's
   foreign ministry has said will include meetings with President Xi
   Jinping and Premier Li Qiang.

   The Vietnamese president, who was elevated this month to the nation's
   top position, general secretary of the ruling Communist Party, arrived
   in Guangzhou, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

   Lam will visit some Chinese locations where former President Ho Chi
   Minh conducted revolutionary activities while in Guangzhou, CCTV added.

   China and Vietnam forged diplomatic ties in 1950. In 2008, both
   countries established a comprehensive strategic partnership of
   cooperation that was jointly fortified in 2013 to address more shared
   international and regional issues of concern.

   The meeting would confirm the close ties between the two communist-run
   neighbors, which have well-developed economic and trade relations
   despite occasionally clashing over boundaries in the energy-rich South
   China Sea.

   China painted Lam's visit as taking Xi's trip to Vietnam in December a
   step further, citing "a good start" to the building of a "China-Vietnam
   community of shared future that carries strategic significance" when
   the Chinese foreign ministry announced the trip.

   The state visit marks Lam's first after taking office, which China said
   "fully reflects the great importance he attaches to the development of
   ties between both parties and countries."

   Both countries signed more than a dozen agreements last December that
   included strengthening railway cooperation and development, and
   establishing communication to handle unexpected incidents in the South
   China Sea. The details of the agreements were not made public.

   Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson
   Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's
   largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as
   international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000
   newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.