HANOI, October 18. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has accepted an invitation from his Vietnamese counterpart, Vo Van Thuong, to make an official visit to the Southeast Asian country, the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reports.
The Russian president said at a meeting with Thuong, held on the sidelines of the Third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing, that Vietnam was one of Russia’s most important partners in the Asia-Pacific region. He also reciprocated Thuong’s offer, inviting the Vietnamese president to visit Russia at a convenient time, the news outlet said.
"President Vo Van Thuong took the opportunity to invite President Putin to visit Vietnam in the near future, which the latter gladly accepted," the agency added.
The Russian president has already made four visits to Vietnam. He first visited the country in February 2001. Putin also participated in Vietnam-hosted summits of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) intergovernmental forum in November 2006 and November 2017. In addition, he made a visit to Hanoi in November 2013 to take part in the opening ceremony of the Days of Russian Culture in Vietnam.