Hanoi: A Chinese naval ship will visit Vietnam next week in the first-ever official port call between the two Communist neighbours, the Foreign Ministry said today.

The ship will make a five-day visit at Danang in central Vietnam starting next Tuesday, ministry spokesman Le Dung told reporters.

Vietnam and China fought a brief but bloody border war in 1979. They normalised relations in 1991 and have since maintained warm ties with annual high-level visits.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung paid an official visit to China last month.

Vietnam is striving to maintain friendly relations with both the United States and China, its massive northern neighbour.

Le Dung said the Chinese ship s visit will be the first official port call between China and Vietnam.

Several US naval ships have visited Vietnam since November 2003,when the USS Vandegrift docked in Ho Chi Minh City in the first US naval port call since the end of the Vietnam War in 1975.
Source : PTI