The General Secretary's first visit to Finland.

Tomorrow, General Secretary To Lam and his wife Ngo Phuong Ly, along with the high-level Vietnamese delegation, will depart for an official visit to Finland.

The visit took place at the invitation of Finnish President Alexander Stubb. This was the first visit by a General Secretary of our Party to Finland since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1973.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang stated that, following the vibrant high-level diplomatic activities since the beginning of the year, General Secretary To Lam's visit to Finland is clear evidence of Vietnam's independent, self-reliant, multilateral, diversified, proactive, and comprehensive international integration foreign policy.

"The visit conveys a message of sincere affection and respect from the Party, State, and people of Vietnam towards Finland, a country that has actively assisted Vietnam in its past struggle to defend the homeland and in its current national construction and development," the Deputy Minister shared.

Finland was one of the first Nordic countries to recognize and establish diplomatic relations with Vietnam.

General Secretary To Lam met with Finnish President Alexander Stubb during his participation in the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in September 2024. Photo: VNA

For decades, Finland has been a key development aid partner of Vietnam, focusing on areas such as water supply and sanitation, poverty reduction, climate change, and forestry, making significant contributions to Vietnam's socio-economic development.

To this day, "clean Finnish water" is still mentioned by Vietnamese people as a symbol of friendship and the effective and enduring assistance from their Finnish friends. Many projects in remote areas have contributed to improving and enhancing the lives of the Vietnamese people.

The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs stated that the visit was also an important opportunity for the two countries to review the positive achievements of past cooperation, as well as to set major directions, renew the relationship, create momentum, and elevate the traditional friendship and multifaceted cooperation to a new level.

Besides strengthening political trust between Vietnam and Finland, the General Secretary's visit will create opportunities for deeper and more comprehensive cooperation in many fields.

These include promising areas such as the digital economy, green economy, circular economy, science and technology, maritime affairs, renewable energy, and high-tech agriculture… These are areas that Vietnam prioritizes, while Finland has strengths and experience in them.

The visit also presents an important opportunity for Vietnam to promote cooperation with the Nordic region, while simultaneously enhancing Vietnam's role in connecting Finland with ASEAN, and the EU with ASEAN, contributing to strengthening regional linkages in a rapidly changing and challenging global context.

Once a friendly nation that supported and helped each other during difficult times, Finland continues to be an important partner of Vietnam in the Nordic region today.

Over time, the Vietnam-Finland relationship has shifted from development cooperation to mutually beneficial cooperation. Bilateral trade between Vietnam and Finland has grown continuously in recent years, reaching US$422.5 million in 2024 and over US$279 million in the first nine months of 2025.

Educational and training cooperation has expanded, with nearly 20 Vietnamese higher education institutions currently collaborating effectively with Finnish partners, and over 2,500 Vietnamese students studying in Finland in fields such as economics, information technology, and tourism.

Cooperation in science and technology, culture and sports, tourism, labor, etc., is developing positively. Cooperation in new fields such as circular economy, high-tech agriculture, green transformation, renewable energy, etc., promises to bring about new cooperation frameworks that are suitable to the potential and needs of each side.

In that spirit, Deputy Minister Le Thi Thu Hang expressed that the visit would contribute to consolidating and strengthening relations between Vietnam and Finland, promoting existing cooperation mechanisms, orienting new cooperation mechanisms, and deepening specialized cooperation, especially in strategic areas.

"General Secretary To Lam's visit will usher in a new phase, creating a strong and breakthrough transformation in cooperation with Finland; bringing many positive results for the benefit of the people of both countries, and making a positive contribution to peace, stability, cooperation and sustainable development in each region and the world," the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs emphasized.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/lan-dau-tien-tong-bi-thu-tham-phan-lan-2454334.html