They wish to learn more from Indonesia on how to manage mining especially coal mining."
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia and Vietnam here on Friday signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the fields of energy and mineral resources.

"This will be an umbrella to follow up the meeting between the President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and the Vietnamese president yesterday on collaboration in the fields of energy, mineral resources and coal," Deputy Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Susilo Siswoutomo said after signing the MOU with his Vietnamese counterpart, Nguyen Cam Tu.

He said Vietnam wished to learn from Indonesia about mineral and energy exploration especially coal exploration.

"They wish to learn more from Indonesia on how to manage mining especially coal mining," he said.

He said he had offered education and training to Vietnam. "I just now said we also have a training and education department that trains and educates thousands of our workers. If they are interested they may send their staff to learn in Indonesia," he said.

He said it would take time for the implementation of the MOU but cooperation programs in human resource development could be immediately carried out.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono received Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang who came for a two-day state visit until Friday.

The two held a private meeting after a welcoming ceremony at the Merdeka Palace which was later followed by a bilateral meeting between the two countries` delegations.

This was the first visit to Indonesia by the Vietnamese president.

The two countries` bilateral relations increased faster after the two signed strategic partnership agreement in 2003.

Trade between the two countries continued to increase reaching US$4.8 billion in 2012 and is expected to reach US$5 billion in 2015.

(Reporting by Anita Permata Dewi/H-YH/F001)

Editor: Priyambodo RH
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