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| Vietnam and Estonia have traditional relations. (Photo: Minh Nhat) |
Located in Northern Europe, after declaring independence from the Soviet Union, Estonia has built a foreign policy based on Western integration, protecting sovereignty and promoting democratic values.
In 2004, Estonia joined NATO and the European Union (EU), opening a new stage of development. Within the EU, Estonia held the rotating presidency in 2017 and supported the bloc's enlargement.
In addition to its relations with the West, Estonia develops cooperation with the Asia-Pacific region, especially Japan, South Korea, India and Vietnam. Estonia supports the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and actively promotes cooperation in areas such as technology, education and digital transformation. Estonia focuses on key economic sectors such as information technology and the digital economy, manufacturing and electronics, energy and green technology, agriculture and food industry, tourism and services.
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| Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his wife Le Thi Bich Tran. (Photo: Nguyen Hong) |
At the invitation of Prime Minister of the Republic of Estonia Kristen Michal, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his wife, along with a high-ranking delegation of Vietnam, will pay an official visit to the Republic of Estonia from June 5-7.
Over the past time, the diplomatic relations between the two countries have always been maintained and developed well. Estonia has repeatedly affirmed that Vietnam is its priority partner in Southeast Asia and wishes to further promote relations with us. At multilateral forums, Vietnam and Estonia actively support each other.
Vietnam-Estonia trade cooperation has recently shown an upward trend, but remains modest. Two-way trade turnover in 2024 will only reach over 73 million USD.
Regarding investment, Estonia has 5 valid direct investment projects in Vietnam with a total investment capital of 280,000 USD in the fields of information and communication, science and technology and healthcare.
Estonia has also actively supported Vietnam in signing the EVFTA and is one of the first EU countries to ratify the Investment Protection Agreement between Vietnam and the European Union (EVIPA).
According to the assessment of the Estonian Ambassador to China, concurrently serving Vietnam, Mongolia and Thailand, Hannes Hanso, thanks to the EVFTA, Vietnam and Estonia have witnessed a continuous increase in trade exchange between the two countries in recent times. Vietnam has become an essential part of the supply chain of Estonian businesses.
The two countries still have a lot of potential to promote cooperation in areas where both countries have needs and strengths such as technology, information, communications, e-government, artificial intelligence, financial technology, digital economy, cyber security, smart logistics, digital seaports, and e-government development.
Estonia is one of the world leaders in technology. In this country, 100% of public services are digital, with the X-Road system at the heart of it allowing agencies to exchange data seamlessly and securely. Every citizen has an electronic identification card (digital ID) for secure authentication and legally valid digital signature.
A key strength of the Estonian model is the close coordination between the public and private sectors, which helps to foster innovation, improve service efficiency and sustain continuous development.
In an interview with The World and Vietnam Newspaper about the significance of the official visit to Estonia by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his wife and the potential for cooperation between the two countries, Vietnamese Ambassador to Finland and Estonia Pham Thi Thanh Binh assessed that the Nordic country is known as a pioneer in building e-government, digital society and smart governance. Estonia's experiences, such as providing comprehensive online public services, can provide practical reference values for Vietnam.
"Estonia's digital transformation journey is a source of inspiration and invaluable lessons. With a strategic vision, thorough investment in technology and people, a progressive legal framework and especially the building of an "architecture of trust" with its people, Estonia has proven that a small country can still become a giant on the digital stage," Ambassador Pham Thi Thanh Binh shared.
Meanwhile, Ambassador Hannes Hanso assessed that Vietnam has also achieved many impressive progresses in developing the digital economy and e-government infrastructure. Through sharing experiences, good practices and technological solutions, the two sides can support each other in the digital transformation process.
The Ambassador also believes that Estonia's experience in digital governance and startup ecosystem can complement Vietnam's rapidly growing digital economy.
Source: https://baoquocte.vn/doi-net-ve-quan-he-viet-nam-estonia-316495.html
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