The Queen was receiving outgoing Vietnamese Ambassador to the Netherlands Ha Huy Thong, who paid her a courtesy visit on May 28.

She expressed that Vietnam is expected to become one of the first countries to fulfill the United Nations Millennium Development Goals set for developing countries.

Queen Beatrix also praised Vietnam’s recent external relations achievements, expressing her delight at the country’s celebrations of the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi as well as its role of ASEAN Chair and ASEAN representative at the G-20 Summit.

She said she hopes that the Netherlands-Vietnam relationship would be further consolidated, especially in economics, trade, and climate change and water management.