Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino's upcoming official visit to Vietnam may open a new phase in bilateral cooperation, Vietnamese Ambassador to Mexico and Panama Nguyen Van Hai told the Vietnam News Agency.
The ambassador said the visit would be the first high-level exchange between the two countries in nearly 15 years, after then-President Ricardo Martinelli visited Vietnam in 2012. It comes shortly after the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2025.
He identified three areas for cooperation: turning political agreements into programmes and projects, expanding trade and investment in agriculture, banking, telecommunications, infrastructure, maritime transport and education, and strengthening the legal framework. Agreements are expected to be signed during the visit.
Vietnam Customs said bilateral trade reached 478.1 million USD in 2025, up 19.2% year on year. Vietnam exported 462.6 million USD worth of goods to Panama, including footwear, phones and components, computers and electronics, textiles, transport equipment and seafood.
Bilateral trade still accounted for less than 0.1% of Vietnam's total trade and about 3% of Panama's. The ambassador said Panama could serve as a gateway for Vietnamese goods to Latin America and the Caribbean. The Panama Canal connects more than 180 shipping routes, about 170 countries and 1,900 ports.
Hai called for stronger business links, trade facilitation, investment promotion and regular business forums. He also said cooperation could expand through parliamentary diplomacy, people-to-people exchanges and work among localities and companies in logistics, maritime affairs, agriculture, tourism, education and digital transformation.
Vietnam and Panama share interests in multilateralism, free trade and international law, he said. He called for more cooperation on climate change, environmental protection, food security, sustainable development, maritime safety and transnational crime, as well as coordination at the United Nations, ASEAN, APEC, CELAC and SICA.
The ambassador added that people-to-people diplomacy could include student and academic exchanges, Spanish-language education, cultural events, tourism and youth activities. The goal should be direct and substantive links among people, businesses and localities rather than simply more events.
Sources: VietnamPlus / Vietnam News Agency
