Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem will pay an official visit to China from March 24 to 29 to boost cooperative ties between the two countries, according to a spokesman of the Foreign Ministry.

Khiem's visit, at the invitation of Foreign Minister LiZhaoxing, is aimed at "promoting all-round cooperative relations in a ceaselessly deepened, practical and effective manner," Vietnamese foreign ministry spokesman Le Dung announced at a regular press briefing on Thursday.

During the trip, the two sides will discuss the implementation of agreements reached by Vietnam and China in 2006, make preparations for their high-level visits in 2007, and put forth measures to beef up bilateral cooperation on economy and trade and among border localities, he said.

Khiem will hold talks with Li Zhaoxing, and meet with some other Chinese officials. He will also visit China's Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) on March 28 at the invitation of SAR Chief Executive Edmund Ho Hau Wah.

(Xinhua News Agency March 23, 2007)