General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and President Tô Lâm said Vietnam regards the European Union as one of its priority partners and wants to develop the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with the bloc in a deeper and more effective way.
At a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels, Tô Lâm called for stronger cooperation in areas supporting the development goals of both sides.
He welcomed EU initiatives on competitiveness, the green transition and digital transformation, and outlined Vietnam's goals for 2030 and 2045, including rapid and sustainable development and effective use of external knowledge, technology and experience.
Tô Lâm called on both sides to make science and technology, innovation and energy transition central areas of cooperation. He also called for more effective use of the EU's Global Gateway initiative, the Just Energy Transition Partnership and Horizon Europe.
Von der Leyen said the EU regards Vietnam as a reliable partner in the Indo-Pacific and is ready to cooperate in trade, investment, science and technology, innovation and sustainable development. She also expressed interest in cooperation on critical raw materials, sustainable processing, technology and supply-chain diversification.
Von der Leyen said there is room for cooperation in nuclear and renewable energy. The EU is ready to support Vietnam's ambition to become a regional transport and transit hub and called for progress on projects including the Bắc Ái pumped-storage hydropower project, Liên Chiểu Port in Đà Nẵng and the preservation of Long Biên Bridge in Hà Nội.
The two sides agreed to use the special task force implementing the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement more effectively and to work towards removing the EU's yellow-card warning against Vietnamese seafood exports over illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.
The leaders pledged to strengthen cooperation in education, culture, tourism, defence and security, crisis management, UN peacekeeping and maritime security. They also agreed to coordinate at multilateral forums and uphold international law, including freedom of navigation and overflight under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Tô Lâm invited von der Leyen to pay an official visit to Vietnam at an early date.
Sources: Viet Nam News
