China's President Xi Jinping has said in his talks with Vietnam's Communist Party General Secretary To Lam that the two countries should jointly oppose unilateral bullying.

Xi made the remark during the meeting in Vietnam on Monday, according to the Chinese foreign ministry. Xi visited the country as part of his first overseas trip this year.

The talks came amid escalating trade friction between China and the US, with both sides imposing additional tariffs on the other.

China and Vietnam agreed to deepen cooperation in a wide range of fields, including artificial intelligence and agricultural trade, and signed 45 cooperation documents.

Beijing is apparently seeking stronger relations with Vietnam, one of its major trade partners, to mitigate the effects of its escalating trade friction with the US.

Following his visit to Vietnam, Xi will head to Malaysia and Cambodia in an apparent effort to step up cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. For China, ASEAN is a larger trade partner than the US.