Vietnam-Russia relationship is strong over the years

The visit took place in the context of Vietnam and Russia celebrating the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations in 2020 and organizing Cross Years in each country to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty on the fundamental principles of Vietnam-Russia friendship and the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Joint Statement on the Vietnam-Russia strategic partnership.

In the special and meaningful context mentioned above, the official visit to Russia by President Nguyen Xuan Phuc aims to further strengthen the traditional friendship and comprehensive strategic partnership between Vietnam and Russia.

The two leaders met in 2016. Photo courtesy of chinhphu.vn

Since the two countries officially established diplomatic relations on January 30, 1950, bilateral relations have developed very strongly. Looking back at the history of bilateral relations over the past 70 years, it can be seen that the Vietnam-Russia relationship has always been strong over the years and has increasingly developed in all areas such as politics-diplomacy, economics-trade, culture-society, science-technology...

Having endured the test of time and the vicissitudes of history, the traditional friendship between the two countries has always been warm and trustworthy. The Vietnamese people are always grateful for the sincere and wholehearted assistance that the people of the Russian Federation, in the former Soviet Union, gave to Vietnam in the cause of national liberation and national construction. In multilateral forums, the two sides share the same views on many international and regional issues, closely coordinating and supporting each other at international forums such as the United Nations, ASEAN, etc.

In the political and diplomatic fields, Vietnam-Russia relations have high trust and are strengthened through visits at all levels as well as annual consultation and strategic dialogue mechanisms. High-level visits are carried out quite frequently by the two countries, creating new momentum for other areas of cooperation. Despite the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, bilateral economic and trade cooperation has maintained positive growth momentum with two-way trade turnover in 2020 reaching nearly 4.85 billion USD.

As of April 2021, Russia ranked 25th among countries and territories investing in Vietnam with 144 projects and a total registered capital of about 944 million USD. Vietnam has more than 20 investment projects in Russia with a total registered capital of nearly 3 billion USD. Energy is a traditional strategic and effective field of cooperation, bringing significant revenue to the budgets of the two countries. The Vietnamese community in Russia currently has about 60-80 thousand people, who have been doing business and living in Russia for three decades; have made significant contributions to the country, and are always at the forefront of charitable activities.

The Covid-19 pandemic has further affirmed the strength of solidarity and mutual love between Vietnam and Russia. Since the outbreak of the disease, the two countries have closely coordinated in supplying and transferring technology, and producing Covid-19 vaccines. In the early stages of the outbreak, the Vietnamese Government, the National Assembly, and Vietnamese ministries and sectors donated masks and some medical supplies to Russia. Russia has provided us with Sputnik V vaccine doses, treatment drugs, and medical supplies.

The visit of President Nguyen Xuan Phuc aims to strengthen the traditional friendship and comprehensive strategic partnership between Vietnam and Russia, thereby opening up new opportunities in areas with great potential for cooperation between the two countries. The visit also contributes to affirming the foreign policy set forth by the 13th National Party Congress: independence, self-reliance, diversification and multilateralization of foreign relations, continuing to deepen bilateral relations.

The exchange of high-level delegations between the two countries after a hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic is important in consolidating political trust and strengthening relations between the two countries' senior leaders, especially after Vietnam successfully organized the 13th National Party Congress and Russia held the State Duma election in September 2021.