Joint Statement on the Vision of the Vietnam - Russia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership to 2030

Nghe An Newspaper would like to introduce the full text of the Joint Statement on the Vision of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Russian Federation until 2030.

President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam Nguyen Xuan Phuc and President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin held talks on November 30 in Moscow (Russia).

Based on the results of the talks on November 30, 2021 in Moscow,President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam Nguyen Xuan Phucand President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin agreed as follows:

Promoting effective cooperation experience between the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Russian Federation,

Wishing to deepen and bring the relationship between the two countries to new heights.

In order to determine the main directions for developing the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership until 2030, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Russian Federation issue the following statement:

1. The Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Russian Federation is based on the foundation of long-standing traditional friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation, nurtured by many previous generations, tested by time, standing firm against changes and is a model of mutually respectful cooperation, meeting the fundamental interests of the people of the two countries. Since the two countries issued the Declaration on Strategic Partnership in 2001 and upgraded to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2012, Vietnam - Russia relations have been strengthened in many aspects and widely in all fields.

Political dialogue has a high level of trust. Regular contacts at all levels, including at the high level, are a solid foundation for promoting relations in all fields. Vietnam and Russia have close and similar approaches on most international and regional issues, contributing to promoting close coordination between the two countries within the framework of multilateral organizations.

Cooperation in the military, military-technical and security fields holds a special position in Vietnam-Russia relations and is constantly being strengthened for the interests of Vietnam and Russia and the people of the two countries, contributing to ensuring peace and stability in the region and the world.

With the ever-expanding economic, trade and investment cooperation, Vietnam and Russia have become important trade partners of each other. With the Free Trade Agreement between the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Eurasian Economic Union and its member countries signed in 2015 and effective from 2016, trade between the two countries has grown significantly. The two sides continue to implement cooperation projects on oil and gas exploration and exploitation in line with the interests of both sides, focusing on cooperation in the fields of electric power, industry, information technology and agriculture.

Cooperation in the fields of education and training, science and technology, culture and tourism continues to be strengthened. Relations between localities and social organizations of Vietnam and Russia are promoted.

2. In order to promote the achievements over the past two decades, preserve the fine tradition of friendship and take advantage of the existing cooperation potential, the two sides affirmed their determination to further strengthen the Vietnam - Russian Federation Comprehensive Strategic Partnership until 2030 with the following main principles and orientations:

Strengthening and improving the effectiveness of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership is a foreign policy priority of Vietnam and Russia, meeting the long-term interests of the two countries, contributing to the development of each country and enhancing the role of the two countries in the region and the world.

Vietnam and Russia build a comprehensive strategic partnership on the basis of mutual trust, based on the principles of sovereign equality, territorial integrity, equality and self-determination of peoples, non-interference in each other's internal affairs, non-use of force or threat to use force, settlement of disputes by peaceful means, as well as other provisions of the United Nations Charter and international law.

The two sides support peace, stability and development in the region and the world, taking into account each other's interests in bilateral cooperation and within the framework of regional and international organizations. Vietnam and the Russian Federation do not ally or enter into agreements with third parties to take actions that harm each other's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as fundamental interests. The development of Vietnam - Russia relations is not aimed at opposing any other third party.

The Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Russian Federation are determined to cooperate closely in all areas within both bilateral and multilateral frameworks.

3. Vietnam and Russia continue to develop in-depth and substantive political dialogue at the highest and most senior levels, considering the consolidation of strategic trust as the foundation for further expanding and strengthening bilateral cooperation in all fields, perfecting the operation of joint cooperation mechanisms and, if necessary, establishing new forms of cooperation to create momentum and substantive breakthroughs in bilateral relations.

Accordingly, the two sides are determined to carry out the following tasks:

- Maintain regular exchanges of delegations at high and highest levels, meetings within the framework of international forums and other contacts.

- Promote cooperation between the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the houses of the National Assembly of the Russian Federation, including urging the implementation of agreements reached, including within the framework of the Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation Committee between the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the State Duma of the Russian Federation; continue to coordinate actions at international and regional parliamentary forums.

- Maintain extensive contact through Party, Government, ministry, branch, local and social organization channels, encourage the expansion of youth exchanges.

- Promote the activities and coordinating role of the Vietnam - Russia Intergovernmental Committee on economic - trade and scientific - technical cooperation, including in implementing high-level agreements.

- Improve the effectiveness of the Dialogue between the Ministry of Public Security of Vietnam and the Office of the Security Council of the Russian Federation on important strategic issues, as well as the Strategic Dialogue on Foreign Affairs - Defense - Security at the level of First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs with the participation of relevant agencies.

4. Vietnam and Russia continue to strengthen defense, security, military and military-technical cooperation on the basis of international law, for peace and stability in the region and the world.

The two sides maintain regular exchanges on defense and security channels, including at the leadership level; enhance training and specialized activities between relevant agencies and units; and perfect specialized mechanisms and legal bases to support effective cooperation in the defense and security fields.

Vietnam and Russia will continue to strengthen strategic dialogue on defense and coordinate to improve the effectiveness of the Vietnam-Russia Intergovernmental Commission on military-technical cooperation.

The two countries will further strengthen cooperation between the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security and the Security Council of the Russian Federation, as well as between other security and law enforcement agencies of the two countries.

The two sides continued to strengthen comprehensive cooperation in the field of international information security in accordance with international law and the spirit of the Joint Statement between President Tran Dai Quang and President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin on cooperation in the field of ensuring international information security, adopted on November 10, 2017, and the Vietnam-Russia Intergovernmental Agreement on cooperation in the field of ensuring international information security dated September 6, 2018 on preventing the use of information and communication technology to sabotage, violate sovereignty, territorial integrity and other actions to hinder international peace, security and stability.

5. The two sides consider economic cooperation an important pillar of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, will strive to further expand cooperation on the basis of mutual benefit, and are determined to create favorable conditions and promptly resolve issues arising in the cooperation process.

To achieve that goal, Vietnam and Russia affirmed their readiness to carry out the following tasks:

- Improve the effectiveness of the implementation of the Free Trade Agreement between the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Eurasian Economic Union and its member countries in the direction of facilitating the import and export of goods in addition to the incentives already provided in the Agreement, including removing non-tariff barriers to ensure sustainable and balanced growth in trade turnover.

- Encourage bilateral investment in Vietnam and Russia in traditional and new fields, such as electric energy, including renewable energy, industry, mining, high technology, transportation, urban development, housing, urban technical infrastructure, agriculture, and forestry; support to enhance the role and effectiveness of the Vietnam - Russia High-Level Working Group on priority investment projects.

- Strengthening cooperation in the energy and oil and gas sector, which is the leading important pillar of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, supporting the expansion of cooperation in promising areas such as the construction of gas-fired power plants, the supply of liquefied natural gas to Vietnam and the construction of appropriate infrastructure, the development of renewable energy, the production of motor fuels, as well as the modernization of energy facilities; supporting the implementation of existing or new projects with the participation of the Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group and Zarubezhneft, Gazprom, Novatek and Rosatom, as well as other companies, including for power projects using liquefied natural gas in Vietnam.

- Create favorable conditions for the expansion of operations of Vietnamese oil and gas enterprises in the Russian Federation and Russian oil and gas enterprises on the continental shelf of Vietnam, as well as the implementation of joint projects in third countries, in accordance with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the laws of Vietnam and Russia.

- Strengthening industrial cooperation, including deploying in Vietnam Russian motor vehicle assembly production facilities and gradually localizing production.

- Strengthening agricultural and forestry cooperation to take advantage of the strengths of both countries, promoting trade exchange of agricultural, aquatic and seafood products.

- Expand cooperation in the field of finance and credit, specifically including promoting the use of local currency in payment, strengthening the connection of the two national payment systems, continuing to improve the effectiveness of cooperation between the two banking systems to facilitate economic, trade and investment cooperation between the two countries; actively promoting the role of the Vietnam - Russia Joint Venture Bank in implementing joint cooperation projects.

- Continue to cooperate in building e-Government with a focus on ensuring network security, taking into account the trustworthiness of the Vietnam - Russia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

- Encourage direct cooperation between provinces and cities of Vietnam with entities of the Russian Federation, including investment cooperation between Vietnam and the Siberian and Far Eastern regions of Russia.

6. Vietnam and Russia are determined to strengthen cooperation in education, training and science and technology, considering this as one of the key directions of cooperation between the two countries. Accordingly, the two sides attach importance to enhancing the coordinating role of the Vietnam-Russia Cooperation Committee on Education, Science and Technology, as well as the activities of the Coordination Committee of the Vietnam-Russia Joint Tropical Science and Technology Research Center.

The two sides continue to promote exchanges in the fields of culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges, which play an important role in enhancing understanding and preserving the tradition of friendship between the Vietnamese and Russian people.

The main tasks to implement the above orientations include:

- Strengthen cooperation in the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, first of all within the framework of the project to build a Center for Nuclear Science and Technology Research in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and continue to train Vietnamese students at Russian universities in related majors. In case Vietnam restores its plan to develop nuclear power, Russia will be considered a priority partner in this field.

- Strengthening cooperation within the framework of the Vietnam-Russia Joint Tropical Science and Technology Research Center, continuously consolidating the Center's potential.

- Expand the number and content of joint scientific and technological research tasks, including in the fields of life sciences, energy technology, space technology, rational use of environmental resources, and basic research; promote cooperation between the two countries' academies, and continue to carry out joint projects on marine research;

- Promote cooperation in the field of digital transformation, management of transnational platforms, and the use of outer space for peaceful purposes, including cooperation in the use and development of Russia's GLONASS global satellite navigation system;

- Expand exchanges between educational institutions, universities and academies of the two countries, promote cooperation in vocational secondary and continuing vocational training; improve the expertise of civil servants; continue to train Vietnamese citizens at Russian universities with scholarships granted.

- Encourage research and teaching of Russian in Vietnam and Vietnamese in Russia, including making full use of the potential of the Pushkin State Institute of Russian Language in Hanoi and the Russian Center of Science and Culture in Hanoi.

- Promote cooperation in the medical and pharmaceutical fields based on experience in cooperation in preventing and fighting the COVID-19 pandemic in recent times; exchange experts and technological know-how in developing new solutions and applications in medical examination and treatment; facilitate the supply, production cooperation and technology transfer of vaccines and pharmaceuticals.

- Strengthen judicial cooperation, improve the effectiveness of the Vietnam-Russia Working Group on law, to continue to further improve the legal basis for bilateral cooperation.

- Encourage cultural, sports and tourism cooperation, youth exchange and people-to-people diplomacy, regularly hold cultural days, cross-year events, and activities on the occasion of the anniversary of Vietnam-Russia relations.

- Support to simplify travel procedures for citizens of the two countries, promoting the number of tourists from the two countries.

- Continue to discuss immigration issues; facilitate the living, working and studying of Vietnamese citizens in Russia and Russian citizens in Vietnam.

7. Vietnam and Russia support the building of a more democratic and equitable international system on the basis of respect for international law and the principles of the United Nations Charter, including sovereign equality, territorial integrity, equality and self-determination of peoples, non-interference in the internal affairs of states, non-use of force or threat of force, and peaceful settlement of disputes. The two sides do not support unilateral economic sanctions and embargoes without going through the United Nations Security Council and violating international law.

The two sides believe that international security is indivisible and comprehensive, stemming from the impossibility of ensuring the security of one country by harming the security of another, including expanding or establishing new closed military-political alliances; considering the consolidation of strategic trust as an important factor in ensuring peace, stability and cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region and in the world.

The two countries affirmed their readiness to promote joint efforts of the international community to respond to traditional and non-traditional security challenges such as terrorism, transnational crime, armed conflicts, territorial disputes, subversion, illegal drug production and consumption, climate change, and epidemics. They will work together to ensure information, food and water security, as well as to effectively implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;

Vietnam and Russia continue to promote cooperation in the fight against international terrorism and the financing of international terrorism with the central and coordinating role of the United Nations on the basis of strictly complying with the standards and principles of international law, as well as strengthening the leading role of the State and competent agencies in preventing and dealing with terrorism and extremism.

The two sides stand ready to actively cooperate to strengthen the international system of drug control on the basis of relevant United Nations Conventions.

Vietnam and Russia support multilateralism in international relations and strengthen the central coordinating role of the United Nations in ensuring peace, security and sustainable development, and support the improvement of the effectiveness of operations, democratization and reform of the United Nations. Based on close and similar positions on many global and regional issues, the two sides continue to cooperate closely at the United Nations and other multilateral international organizations for peace, stability and common prosperity, and support each other's candidacy for international organizations and their executive bodies.

The two sides will continue to cooperate equally and with mutual respect to promote and protect human rights on the basis of the United Nations Charter and international law, in accordance with the laws of each country, as well as closely coordinate to prevent the exploitation of human rights issues to interfere in the internal affairs of each country.

Vietnam and Russia support international efforts to control weapons, disarmament and non-proliferation, including moving towards the goal of building a world free of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction, and support continued consultations between the five nuclear powers and member states of the Treaty on the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone to resolve difficulties and move towards signing the Protocol attached to the Treaty.

The two sides affirmed the need to continue discussing the issue of international information security within a common framework under the auspices of the United Nations in order to build an international legal regime on information space management with the aim of preventing conflicts and militarization, as well as ensuring the use of information and communication technology for peaceful purposes.

Vietnam and Russia support the United Nations to soon establish a comprehensive convention on preventing and suppressing the use of information and communications technology for criminal purposes and further strengthen international cooperation in this field.

The two sides affirmed the need to coordinate actions in the field of safe use of information and communication technology within the framework of specialized agencies of the United Nations, including the International Telecommunication Union.

The two countries pledged to maintain and promote the multilateral trading system based on the World Trade Organization (WTO); strengthen coordination within the WTO and promote WTO reform to ensure the interests of all economies, including developing members.

Vietnam and Russia affirmed the universality and unity of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which is the legal framework for all activities at sea and in the oceans and plays a fundamental role for cooperation among countries, regions and internationally, emphasizing the need to maintain the integrity of the Convention.

The two sides agreed that it is necessary to strengthen the region's joint efforts to build an equal and indivisible, comprehensive, open and transparent security and cooperation structure in the Asia-Pacific region, based on the principles of collectiveness, non-alignment, and international law, including the principles of non-use or threat of force, peaceful resolution of conflicts, and non-interference in each other's internal affairs. The sides opposed the division of cooperation between Asia-Pacific countries, which negatively impacted the expansion and enhancement of the region's common dialogue.

Vietnam and Russia will coordinate to ensure security, safety and freedom of navigation and overflight and unimpeded commercial activities, support self-restraint, non-use of force or threat to use force and settlement of disputes between relevant parties by peaceful means in accordance with the general principles and norms of international law, including those in the Charter of the United Nations, the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, as well as in accordance with the standards and recommended practices of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

Vietnam and Russia support the full and effective implementation of the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea and welcome efforts to soon adopt a Code of Conduct of Parties in the East Sea.

The two sides support the strengthening of the central role of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in relations between countries in the Asia-Pacific region through upholding the values ​​and principles of the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC), fully participating in ASEAN-led cooperation mechanisms such as the East Asia Summit (EAS), the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), and the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting Plus (ADMM+); continue to support each other's initiatives within the framework of the above mechanisms, and study possible areas of cooperation within the framework of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AIOP) in accordance with the Joint Statement of the 4th ASEAN-Russia Summit on building a peaceful, stable and sustainable region adopted on October 28, 2021.

The two countries stressed the importance of enhancing cooperation in the field of international information security in Russia-ASEAN relations, as well as within the framework of the Russia-ASEAN Dialogue on ensuring information and communications security.

The two sides support promoting the mechanism of the Senior Officials' Dialogue on Security Issues between Russia and ASEAN.

Vietnam and Russia continue to strengthen and deepen the Strategic Partnership between ASEAN and Russia in the spirit of the Joint Statement of the 3rd ASEAN-Russia Summit on Strategic Partnership adopted on November 14, 2018; promote effective cooperation on the basis of the Comprehensive Action Plan to implement the ASEAN-Russia Strategic Partnership for the 2021-2025 period.

The two sides support the strengthening of regional economic connectivity and the implementation of inter-regional connectivity initiatives, including the Greater Eurasian Partnership project, and the enhancement of economic cooperation between ASEAN and the Eurasian Economic Union. The Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Russian Federation continue to promote cooperation between ASEAN and regional organizations of which Russia is a member, such as the Eurasian Economic Union and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

The two countries continue to cooperate within the framework of regional and inter-regional forums, including the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum, the Asia-Europe Cooperation Forum, the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia and regional parliamentary mechanisms such as the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly, the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum, and the Asian Parliamentary Assembly to promote the role of the above cooperation frameworks for the goal of peace, stability and prosperous development in the Asia-Pacific.

The Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Russian Federation believe that the effective implementation of the above-mentioned orientations on bilateral cooperation and cooperation at multilateral forums and international organizations will contribute to deepening and substantivizing the traditional friendship and comprehensive strategic partnership between Vietnam and Russia, meeting the long-term interests of the two countries and peoples, contributing to peace, security and sustainable development in the region and the world./.