On February 5, Vu Dai Thang, Party Central Committee member, Vice Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee and Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee, received and held talks with Chinese Ambassador to Vietnam He Wei.

During the meeting, both sides held in-depth discussions on cooperation between the two countries and the two capitals.

Commending Hanoi's recent development achievements, Ambassador He Wei stressed that every step forward carries great significance because Hanoi represents the image of the country and serves as a window for the world to better understand Vietnam.

He expressed confidence that Hanoi, under the leaders of the new term with strong vision and determination, will continue making breakthroughs and grow into an increasingly livable city.

Impressed by Hanoi's master plan with a 100-year vision, Ambassador He Wei said cooperation on smart city development between Hanoi and Chinese partners could yield many achievements, given China's extensive experience in applying advanced science, technology and digital transformation to modernization and smart governance.

The ambassador also offered recommendations for Hanoi's development efforts and defined an economic development model that creates distinctive advantages for the capital.

He also addressed how Hanoi can become a more livable city, building a governance model with Hanoi's own identity as it moves toward becoming a megacity and fully leveraging the capital's role and status.

The ambassador agreed with Hanoi's approach of using advanced science and technology tools to address environmental pollution and traffic congestion, two pressing challenges facing the city.

However, he also pointed out potential risks, particularly the need to preserve historic relics during planning and urban upgrading, lessons that many large Chinese cities have encountered.

He suggested that Beijing and Shanghai, with extensive experience in these fields, could share valuable information and establish effective cooperation channels with Hanoi.

Thanking the ambassador for his insights, Chairman Thang said Hanoi, together with the country, has entered a new development era marked by national advancement.

He noted that as the capital and national administrative and political center, as well as a major economic hub, Hanoi recognizes its role as a key growth driver and is striving to meet the expectations of the Party, the Government and people nationwide.

The city leader said that in its efforts to become a civilized, cultured, high-income megacity and a major economic and financial center of Vietnam, the region and the world, Hanoi is focusing on building three important foundational legal frameworks.

Among them, the 100-year vision master plan has incorporated feedback from many experts, including Chinese specialists.

Alongside long-term vision, Chairman Thang said Hanoi is currently concentrating on addressing two immediate priorities.

First, there are five major bottlenecks, including urban order, traffic congestion, environmental pollution, flooding and food safety. In this regard, Hanoi hopes to learn from the experience of major Chinese cities, especially Beijing.

Second, the city is developing a new economic growth model that takes science and technology as the main driving force, aiming to achieve double-digit growth in the coming years.

On this occasion, Chairman Thang asked Ambassador He Wei to consider introducing institutions that could help train management officials in key fields needed for development.

He also welcomed the ambassador's call for Chinese agencies to continue supporting Hanoi in urban planning, infrastructure development, digital infrastructure and related areas.