Chinese Premier Li Chang visits Vietnam... Expected to agree on railway connection and more

Awkward Atmosphere Due to South China Sea Clash... Hopes for Tension Easing

Chinese Premier Li Qiang will officially visit Vietnam on the 12th (local time) and meet with Vietnamese leaders to discuss strengthening cooperation between the two countries, including railway connections.

According to the local state-run media Vietnam News Agency (VNA), Premier Li will officially visit Vietnam for three days starting on the 12th. This is his first visit to Vietnam since taking office in March last year.

On the day of his arrival, Premier Li will meet with Vo Lam, the top-ranking official in Vietnam and Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, and on the 13th, he will meet with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.

During this visit, the two countries are expected to sign agreements covering railway connections, expansion of agricultural trade, improvements in payment systems, and customs procedures.

Earlier, in August, during Secretary Vo Lam's visit to China, China agreed to support the plan to replace the narrow-gauge domestic railway sections in Vietnam that connect the Chinese border areas within Vietnam and major Vietnamese cities with standard-gauge railways compatible with Chinese railways. The two countries are reported to be signing an agreement on the feasibility study for the construction of the standard-gauge railway.

Premier Li's visit is also seen as an opportunity to ease tensions between the two countries following the incident involving attacks on Vietnamese fishermen by China.

On the 29th of last month, a Vietnamese fishing boat operating in the disputed South China Sea Paracel Islands (called Xisha Islands in China and Hoang Sa Islands in Vietnam) was attacked by Chinese forces, resulting in injuries to 10 fishermen, including broken arms or legs for three of them.

At that time, the Vietnamese government expressed "extreme concern and anger over the brutal treatment by Chinese law enforcement authorities" and firmly protested, demanding measures to prevent recurrence.