HANOI - General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong met with visiting Chinese State Councilor Meng Jianzhu in Hanoi on Wednesday.

During the meeting, Trong said Vietnam is ready to work with China to maintain high-level exchanges, enhance political mutual trust, strengthen unity and cooperation with the spirit of comrade and brother bond, and properly handle maritime issues through friendly consultation.

Vietnam and China enjoy a traditional and long-standing friendship. Vietnamese party, government and people will never forget China's support and help in Vietnam's national liberation and construction, he added.

He said the Vietnamese party and government attach great importance to the friendly cooperation with China and are willing to work with Chinese side to promote law enforcement cooperation between the two countries.

Meng, who is also the minister of public security, arrived here on Tuesday for a three-day visit, briefed the Vietnamese party leader outcomes of talks between him and the Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, Permanent Member of the Secretariat of the CPV Central Committee Le Hong Anh, and Vietnamese Minister of Public Security Tran Dai Quang.

"Tran Dai Quang and I reached consensus on the third China- Vietnam public security ministerial meeting on cooperation against crime, during which both sides agreed to further strengthening law enforcement cooperation, to contribute to the development of the friendly relations between the two countries," he said.

Meng said the South China Sea issue does not represent the entirety of China-Vietnam relations, but will affect their ties if improperly dealt with.

The issue should be properly solved through bilateral negotiations and friendly consultations in line with the principle of "laying disputes aside and seeking common development", said Meng, adding that the two sides should join hands to implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, in order to promote the healthy and stable development of China-Vietnam relations.