General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Chinese President Hu Jintao and visiting General Secretary Nong Duc Manh of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Viet Nam reached this broad consensus during Monday's meeting.

They vowed to make further efforts to ensure friendly relations of all-round cooperation between the two Parties and two countries become even better and closer with friendship passed from generation to generation.

Manh arrived in Beijing Monday afternoon to begin a five-day working visit to China.

During Monday's meeting, Manh said a treaty signed by two countries on boundary demarcation and a pact on the demarcation of Beibu Bay were in the basic interest of the two countries and benefit peace and stability in the region.

Hu called for strengthening bilateral cooperation on the issue of borders, accelerating follow-up work of the land boundaries and delimitation of the Beibu Bay territorial sea and building the borders between China and Viet Nam into borders of long-term peace, stability and friendship.

The boundary and territory issue between China and Viet Nam includes the land border, demarcation issue of the Beibu Bay, controversy of the sovereignty and ocean rights and interests over the Nansha Islands and their adjacent waters.

Owing to the joint efforts of both sides, the two countries signed the Land Border Treaty in 1999 and the Sino-Vietnamese Agreement on Demarcation of Territorial Waters, Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf in the Beibu Bay and the Agreement on Fisheries Cooperation in the Beibu Bay in Beijing in 2000.

In order to bring bilateral relations to a new high, Hu said both sides should work together to carry on traditions of high-level exchanges between the two parties and two countries and maintain frequent contact and meetings between their leaders.

Hu called on both sides to try all means to expand and deepen trade and economic cooperation.

The value of two-way trade has increased from US$1.318 billion in 1999 to US$2.4 billion in 2000, US$2.8 billion in 2001, and US$3.65 billion in 2002.

Hu added the two countries should further strengthen exchanges among young people to foster future torch-bearers for Sino-Vietnamese friendship.

Highly appreciating the position of Viet Nam on Taiwan question, Hu expressed thanks for Viet Nam's support to China's reunification.

On the international situation, Hu said that no matter how the world changes China will always adhere to the independent foreign policy of peace.

Manh said Viet Nam maintained that international disputes should be peacefully solved through political avenues.

(China Daily April 8, 2003)