Italy wanted to strengthen relations with Vietnam, said Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on July 14 while receiving Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung, who is on visit to Italy.

Vietnam wants and spares no effort to boosting cooperation with Australia , especially in trade and investment, bringing benefit to both sides, said Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.

Since diplomatic relations between the US and modern Vietnam established in July 1995, a very short time, US-Vietnam relations are more impressive, both the depth of the relationship and the outlook for continued deepening, a US newspaper reported.

There remain wide doors for closer trade and investment linkages between Việt Nam and Italy and the business communities should grasp the opportunities to push the bilateral ties ahead, underlined Vietnamese Permanent Deputy PM Nguyễn Sinh Hùng.

As part of his official visit to Italy, Deputy PM Nguyễn Sinh Hùng met with President of the Lombardia Region Formigoni, Mayor of Milan Letizia Moratti, and witnessed the signing ceremonies of some key agreements.

State President Nguyen Minh Triet received visiting New Zealand Prime Minister John Key in Hanoi on July 12.

PM Nguyễn Tấn Dũng and his New Zealander counterpart John Key showed their determination to cement and deepen the bilateral ties on the basis of stability, long term and mutual benefits.

Fifteen years after normalisation of bilateral relations, the US has become Vietnam's biggest export market and biggest investor with the trade balance always maintained at high surplus level.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Spain, Truong Trieu Duong recently presented his credentials to Spanish King Juan Carlos at the Royal Palace in Madrid.

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key will pay an official visit to Vietnam from July 10-12 at an invitation of his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung.