Vietnam and Bulgaria have agreed to foster their comprehensive cooperation, especially in the fields of trade, health and tourism, their top leaders said Thursday in Hanoi.

After their talks on Thursday morning, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and his visiting Bulgarian counterpart Sergey Stanishev witnessed the signing of three bilateral cooperation deals on economy, tourism and healthcare.

Earlier, they discussed directions and measures to bring the friendly ties and comprehensive cooperation, especially that on trade and economy, to a new height, and other issues of common concern.

Stanishev's visit, taking place at Vietnam's accession to the World Trade Organization, and Bulgaria's upcoming entry to the European Union, will contribute to deepening and broadening the Vietnam-Bulgaria cooperative relations on the basis of mutual benefit and development, Dung said at a press briefing after the talks.

He thanked Bulgaria for its assistance to Vietnam during his country's national liberalization and construction process.

Stanishev, starting his three-day official visit to Vietnam on Thursday, said the two countries should beef up their cooperation, especially on energy, agriculture, and education and training.

Source: Xinhua