Russia, Vietnam planning to scale up mutual trade to $10 billion by 2025 - Deputy PM Chernyshenko

HANOI. April 6 (Interfax) - Russia and Vietnam will endorse a long-term bilateral cooperation development plan for the period until 2030, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko told reporters on the sidelines of a Russian-Vietnamese business forum in Hanoi on Thursday.

"As regards trade and economic relations, I can say that this is a sleeping giant, considering the economies of our countries, considering our commitment to the fraternal partnership relations," Chernyshenko said.

The sides are seeing an enormous potential for doubling the current trade turnover to $10 billion by 2025, which is based on the estimates of "the giant projects that our flagship companies such as Zarubezhneft, Gazprom, Novatek and RZD are ready to implement," he said.

Chernyshenko noted the importance of creating favorable conditions in the near term for mutual financial settlements in national currencies, for unimpeded logistics of cargo and passenger transportation between the two countries and for a concessional, simplified visa regime for Russian and Vietnamese citizens.

"The goals that we have set are very ambitions indeed, but they are achievable. We have agreed that a very detailed plan, like a roadmap, will be prepared for the period until 2030 to include measures in three main areas: the first one is a common system to allow payments in national currencies, the second one is simplifying the visa regime and the third is logistics, of course," the Russian deputy prime minister said.