HANOI, June 20. /TASS/. Cooperation between the parliaments of Russia and Vietnam helps strengthen the countries' relations in security, economy and humanitarian development, President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with Vietnamese National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man.

"The parliaments play a significant role in the development and strengthening of our relations," Putin said. "I mean, on a practical level, the adoption of relevant decisions at the legislative level creates a solid and reliable basis for our interaction in the sphere of security, economic and humanitarian development," he emphasized.

"The Vietnamese direction in our foreign policy is one of the unconditional priorities," the Russian leader emphasized. Putin said that he has held "very productive talks with the president, the prime minister, the secretary general" of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee. "I am glad to have the opportunity to meet with you during this visit and to discuss no less important issues for the development of Russian-Vietnamese relations in terms of relations between our parliaments," Putin pointed out.

The Russian leader congratulated Tran Thanh Man on his election as speaker of the Vietnamese parliament. The Vietnamese official only took office on May 20. "We hope that with your election to the high post of the National Assembly speaker, this (parliamentary - TASS) direction of our interaction in the parliamentary dimension will only intensify," Putin concluded.