NDO/VNA – Newly-appointed Vietnamese Ambassador to Indonesia and Timor Leste Ta Van Thong presented his letter of credentials to Indonesian President Joko Widodo at a ceremony at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta on March 2, during which he promised to do his utmost to deepen the strategic partnership between the two countries.

Welcoming the diplomat, President Widodo wished Thong a successful tenure in Indonesia.

For his part, Thong noted Vietnam and Indonesia share a long-standing friendship, which was founded by Vietnamese President Ho Chi Minh and Indonesian President Soekarno and has been fostered by generations of leaders.

The Vietnam-Indonesia strategic partnership has been increasingly strengthened in recent years, with bilateral trade exceeding 11 billion USD for the first time in 2021, up 40 percent year on year.

The ambassador vowed to well perform his mission of connecting Vietnam and Indonesia and promoting their strategic partnership, particularly in trade and investment serving post-pandemic recovery as well as in tourism, education, people-to-people exchange, digital economy, and clean and renewable energy.