Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's visit creates new momentum for Vietnam-India relations

On the occasion of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh 's State visit to India from July 30 to August 1, VNA reporters in New Delhi interviewed Vietnamese Ambassador to India Nguyen Thanh Hai about the significance and key contents of this visit, as well as the cooperation between the two countries in the past and prospects in the coming time.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh meets with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Photo: Duong Giang/VNA

Ambassador, could you please tell us the significance and key contents of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's State visit to India this time?

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh will pay a State visit to India from July 30 to August 1, 2024. This is the first visit by a Vietnamese Prime Minister to India in 10 years and the first visit at the Prime Minister level between the two countries after the two countries upgraded their relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

The visit of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh to India is of great significance to both Vietnam and India: Firstly, the visit demonstrates the importance of the leaders of our Party and State in the relationship with India - a traditional friend and Comprehensive Strategic Partner of Vietnam, a country that is rising strongly in the region and the world. For India, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh is one of the first foreign leaders to visit India after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was re-elected for a third term, demonstrating the importance of the relationship between the two countries.

Second, the visit will create a new impetus to strengthen the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries established in 2016. During this visit, the leaders of the two countries will set out directions to further deepen the Vietnam-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in various fields, meeting the interests of both countries in the context of complex geopolitical and economic adjustments taking place in the world and the region. The two sides will continue to consolidate traditional areas of cooperation and expand to areas where both sides have potential and strengths such as information technology, renewable energy, green economy, digital economy, telecommunications, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, infrastructure, etc.

Third, the visit is also an opportunity for the two countries to enhance sharing and coordination on regional and international issues and support each other at multilateral forums, promote the comprehensive strategic partnership between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and India, and jointly contribute to maintaining and promoting peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world.

How does the Ambassador evaluate the cooperation between Vietnam and India in recent times and the prospects for relations between the two countries in the coming time?

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Vietnam to India Nguyen Thanh Hai. Photo: VNA

The traditional and friendly relations between Vietnam and India have been nurtured by President Ho Chi Minh and previous Indian leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and generations of leaders and people of the two countries. Since upgrading to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2016, the relationship between the two countries has been continuously deepened in all fields with a solid foundation of relations and high political trust.

Relations between the Party, State, National Assembly and people have been constantly expanded, with many visits and contacts at all levels and channels. Defense and security cooperation, an important pillar in bilateral relations, has developed in many steps according to the Joint Vision Statement on Defense Partnership between the two countries. Economic cooperation has seen many improvements.

Two-way trade turnover has increased 2.5 times since the two countries upgraded to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (2016), reaching nearly 15 billion USD in 2023. Large Indian corporations are interested in investing in the Vietnamese market in strategic areas such as renewable energy, processing industry, pharmaceuticals, infrastructure, and logistics. Cooperation in the fields of science and technology, information and communication, education and training, culture and tourism have all developed positively.

In particular, there have been about 60 direct flights a week between the two countries, contributing significantly to the sharp increase in the number of Indian tourists to Vietnam after the pandemic, reaching nearly 400,000 visitors in 2024. India is rising strongly, its international reputation is increasing and it is expected to become the third largest economy in the world in a few years. Meanwhile, Vietnam's potential and position are also increasingly strengthened. With high political trust, the two countries are facing open opportunities to realize the great potential of bilateral cooperation in all fields.

Thank you very much, Ambassador!

Source: https://thoidai.com.vn/chuyen-tham-cua-thu-tuong-pham-minh-chinh-tao-xung-luc-moi-cho-quan-he-viet-nam-an-do-202879.html