The new Vietnamese leader, To Lam, visited Beijing and spoke with Xi Jinping

The meeting between Vietnamese President To Lam and Chinese leaders hints at close ties between the two communist neighbors, which enjoy well-developed economic and trade relations despite occasional border skirmishes in the energy-rich South China Sea.

China, which is delighted that Lam chose Beijing for his first official trip, said last week that it “fully reflects the great importance Lam attaches to the relations between the two parties and the two countries, as well as the high level and strategic nature of China-Vietnam relations,” according to the Chinese news agency Xinhua.

Lam arrived in southern China’s Guangzhou province on Sunday for a three-day visit that will include meetings with Chinese Premier Li Qiang and other top Chinese officials.

While in Guangzhou, he visited some Chinese places where former President Ho Chi Minh led revolutionary activities.

Last December, China and Vietnam signed more than a dozen agreements when Xi visited Vietnam.

The agreements, the details of which have not been released, include strengthening railway cooperation and development, investment in various areas, and establishing communications to deal with unexpected incidents in the South China Sea.

In a lengthy joint declaration, both countries said they would work on a cross-border rail link, citing three rail projects including one linking mountainous Lao Cai in northwestern Vietnam to the port city of Haiphong and a potential one linking two coastal cities to Haiphong.

The announcement mentions continuous support to the railway companies of both countries in further cooperation in order to improve the efficiency of Vietnamese goods passing through China.

Work on other projects within the framework of China’s leading infrastructure program, the Belt and Road Initiative, was also mentioned, and investment cooperation in agriculture, infrastructure, energy, digital economy, green development, and other fields was highlighted.

China and Vietnam established diplomatic ties in 1950 and agreed on a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in 2008 that was jointly strengthened five years later to expand to more common international and regional fields of mutual interest.