Prime Minister’s visit to India looks to spur bilateral relations growth

Vietnamese Ambassador to India Nguyễn Thanh Hải. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The upcoming state visit by Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính to India is expected to inject new momentum into the comprehensive strategic partnership between Việt Nam and India, Vietnamese Ambassador to India Nguyễn Thanh Hải has remarked at an interview with the Vietnam News Agency on the threshold of the trip.

The diplomat said the visit, scheduled from July 30 to August 1, marks the first by a Vietnamese Prime Minister to India in a decade. It is also the first prime ministerial-level visit between the two countries since they upgraded their relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

Hải assessed that this event holds significant importance for both Việt Nam and India, underscoring the Vietnamese leadership’s emphasis on relations with the South Asian nation. For India, it is noteworthy that PM Chính will be one of the first foreign leaders to visit the country following Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s re-election for a third term.

According to him, during the visit, Vietnamese and Indian leaders are expected to outline directions for deepening the partnership across various fields, aligning with the interests of both countries amidst complex geopolitical and economic shifts in the region and the world. The two sides aim to strengthen traditional areas of cooperation and expand into such new potential sectors as information technology, renewable energy, green economy, digital economy, telecommunications, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and infrastructure.

The visit also offers an opportunity for Việt Nam and India to enhance their collaboration and support each other on regional and international issues, as well as at multilateral forums, while boosting ASEAN-India strategic ties and contributing to the maintenance and promotion of peace, stability, cooperation, and development in the region and beyond.

Reflecting on the recent cooperation and future prospects of Việt Nam-India relations, the ambassador noted that the bilateral traditional relations and friendship have been nurtured by late Vietnamese President Hồ Chí Minh and Indian leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, alongside generations of the two nations’ leaders and citizens. Elevated to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2016, the ties have so far grown across all sectors, underpinned by a strong relationship and political trust.

Bilateral engagements across the party, state, parliamentary, and people-to-people channels have expanded, while defence-security cooperation, a key pillar in bilateral relations, has seen significant progress. Two-way trade has increased 2.5 times since 2016, reaching nearly US$15 billion in 2023. Major Indian conglomerates are increasingly interested in investing in the Vietnamese market, particularly in strategic sectors like renewable energy, processing industry, pharmaceuticals, infrastructure, and logistics. Notably, there are now about 60 direct flights per week between the two countries, with nearly 400,000 Indians visiting Việt Nam so far this year.

Hai went on noting that India is emerging as a significant global player, expected to become the world’s third largest economy in the coming years, while Việt Nam’s potential and international standing are on the rise. With strong political trust, they are presented with vast opportunities to realise their immense bilateral cooperation potential across various fields. — VNS