Australian Consul General Julianne Cowley speaks at the ceremony (Photo: VNA)

In her speech, Australian Consul General Julianne Cowley said the event offers a chance for the two sides to review and further strengthen the bilateral partnership, which plays an increasingly important role in the current world context.

Cowley highlighted the Australia-Vietnam cooperation over the past 48 years, saying that the relationship is built on the foundation of mutual respect and trust, with common interests and close cohesion, demonstrated through the effective cooperation between the two countries in politics, economy, defence - security, education, and people-to-people diplomacy, and especially in supporting each other in the fight against  the COVID-19 pandemic. Affirming the important role and position of Ho Chi Minh City in the relationship with Australia, Cowley emphasised that the two countries have a lot of potential and opportunities to make their bilateral ties more successful and prosperous.

Tran Phuoc Anh, acting director of the municipal Department of Foreign Affairs, highlighted the flourishing development of the Vietnam - Australia relations across various fields. In 2020, the Australian government helped Vietnam in overcoming the consequences of floods, and accessing vaccines against COVID-19 through the Indo-Pacific Health Security and Vaccine Initiative, he said, adding Australia also promoted the Aus4Innovation Partnership between the two countries  towards post-pandemic economic recovery solutions. Dynamic development in the relationship between the city and Australia will contribute to realising the action programme implementing the Vietnam - Australia Strategic Partnership in the period 2020-2023, he added.