Vietnam PM accorded Guard of Honour at Rashtrapati Bhavan

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung was on Tuesday accorded a ceremonial reception in the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan and was formally received by President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Prime Minister Dung also visited Rajghat to pay tribute to Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi.

Dung began his two-day state visit by touching down in Bodh Gaya, where he visited the Bodhgaya temple and the Vietnam Buddhism Pagoda.

The Vietnamese Prime Minister later arrived in New Delhi, where he had an interactive session with Indian industry honchos.

Representatives of the Confederation of Indian Industry, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry and the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India were present at the event.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold delegation-level talks with his Vietnamese counterpart at a state banquet hosted by the former on Tuesday evening.

India and Vietnam are scheduled to sign an agreement on Tuesday allowing the former to explore the South China Sea for oil, despite strong protests from China.

Both the countries could sign at least a dozen pacts to boost cooperation in sectors like energy, infrastructure, trade and tourism.

This is the Vietnamese Prime Minister's third visit to India. During his visit in 2007, the MEA had issued the Joint Declaration on Strategic Partnership with Vietnam.

In 2012, Nguyen Tan Dung had come to India as part of the India-ASEAN Commemorative Summit that had been held in New Delhi. President Pranab Mukherjee had visited Vietnam last month.