On April 5, 2004, State Councillor Tang Jiaxuan met at the Great Hall of the People with Special Envoy of the Vietnamese Prime Minister and First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam Le Cong Phung.

Tang Jiaxuan said as a result of the concerted strenuous efforts of the top leaderships of the two countries, the friendly relations between China and Vietnam have not come by easily. The two sides should work together and uphold the guideline of "long-term stability, future-orientation, good-neighborliness and comprehensive cooperation" so as to push forward China-Vietnam good-neighborly and friendly relations of cooperation on the correct track in a lasting and stable manner and to enable the two countries to become truly good neighbors and partners.

Tang Jiaxuan said as an important bridge connecting the two continents, Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) has made important contributions to development of the new Asia-Europe partnership of equality. China attaches great importance to the 5th ASEM Summit scheduled to take place in Hanoi in October this year and would like to fully support Vietnam in its preparations for the summit.

Le Cong Phung said the Vietnamese government gives high priority to the development of Vietnam-China good-neighborly and friendly relations of cooperation. Vietnam would like to enhance consultation and cooperation with China, an important member of ASEM, to address the issue of the expansion of ASEM appropriately so as to ensure the success of the summit.