MOSCOW, May 16. /TASS/. Russia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have huge potential for boosting economic cooperation, Vietnamese Ambassador to Russia Nguyen Thanh Son told TASS ahead of the Russia-ASEAN summit due to be held in Sochi on May 19-20.

"ASEAN and Russia have a lot of promising areas for cooperation as the current level of communication is not in line with potential and intensions of both sides," the ambassador said. "The total trade turnover between Russia and ASEAN (equaled $22.5 bln in 2014) is rather modest given the scale of our economies," he said, adding that "there is huge potential for boosting cooperation in the economic sphere."

"As Russia’s biggest partner in ASEAN Vietnam is ready to provide the best possible input and become a ‘bridge’ between Russia and the markets of other ASEAN countries, particularly after the free trade zone agreement was made between Vietnam and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU)," Nguyen Thanh Son said.

"There are other promising areas, such as energy and agriculture where the sides can very well complement each other," the ambassador added.

The Russia-ASEAN summit is expected to become the biggest international event in Russia in 2016. It will be held under the slogan "Towards Strategic Partnership for the Sake of the Common Good."

The summit is expected to adopt a declaration that will lay the basis for an action plan of Russia-ASEAN cooperation in the political, economic and cultural spheres, as well as in the sphere of security.