Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visits Europe

The trip was at the invitation of Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala, and Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Promoting deeper cooperation

From a bilateral perspective, according to Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Hang, the Prime Minister's official visits to Poland, the Czech Republic, and working trip to Switzerland are important opportunities for Vietnam to promote deeper cooperation with countries and regions in Central and Eastern Europe and the EU, to enhance its role as a bridge between Poland and the Czech Republic and ASEAN, to strengthen coordination in addressing regional and global issues, and to contribute to peace , stability, cooperation, and sustainable development in each region and around the world.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh speaking at the 54th World Economic Forum (WEF) in January 2024.

For the Czech Republic and Poland, the visit was particularly special as it coincided with the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Poland and the Czech Republic (February 1950 – February 2025). Many projects throughout the country bear witness to the support and assistance of the people of Poland and the Czech Republic to Vietnam, such as the Vietnam-Poland Hospital in Nghe An, the Vietnam-Poland High School in Hanoi, the Vietnam-Czech Friendship Hospital, and the Hanoi Children's Cultural Palace…

“The Prime Minister and senior leaders of other countries will exchange views and agree on important measures to continuously strengthen political trust, enhance the strategic nature of cooperation, renew traditional areas of cooperation such as economy, trade, investment, labor, education and training, culture, tourism…, create momentum and breakthroughs in potential and important areas such as defense, security, innovation, information technology, digital transformation, green transformation, renewable energy, transportation connectivity…”, Deputy Minister Nguyen Minh Hang said.

From a multilateral perspective, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's participation in the 55th WEF Davos Conference, themed "Cooperation in the Smart Age," was highly anticipated by the WEF leadership and the global business community. This was a crucial opportunity for the international community and major businesses to directly engage with the Prime Minister and leaders from ministries, sectors, localities, and businesses regarding development orientations, priorities, and opportunities that Vietnam can offer businesses during this period of profound global transformation.

“The Prime Minister will convey important messages about Vietnam’s determination, aspirations, and vision towards strategic development goals for the next 20 years. Through in-depth exchanges at the conference, attended by over 3,000 leaders from countries, international organizations, and leading global corporations, we will also be able to grasp the development trends of the era, the currents shaping the smart era, and thereby build mechanisms, policies, and measures to seize opportunities and minimize negative impacts from these new trends,” according to Ms. Hang.

Leading trading partner in Central and Eastern Europe

Poland and the Czech Republic are Vietnam's leading trading partners in the Central and Eastern European region. Cooperation in areas such as defense and security, education and training, science and technology, culture, sports and tourism, and labor is developing positively.

Trade turnover between Vietnam and Poland reached US$3.1 billion by November 2024. As of October 2024, Poland ranked 21st out of 149 countries and territories investing in Vietnam, with 32 active investment projects and a total registered investment capital of US$473 million, primarily in the form of 100% foreign capital. Vietnam has 4 investment projects in Poland with a total investment capital of US$1.84 million, in the service and processing industries.

In 2023, bilateral trade between Vietnam and the Czech Republic reached nearly US$1.134 billion, with Vietnam exporting US$958 million to the Czech Republic and importing over US$176 million from the Czech Republic.

Vietnam exports goods to the Czech Republic such as: coffee, pepper, fresh and dried fruits, peanuts, tea, rice, rubber, seafood, footwear, textiles, handicrafts, computer components, etc. Vietnam imports from the Czech Republic electronics, machinery, chemicals, clothing, textiles, leather goods, milk and dairy products, pharmaceuticals, mechanical products, plastics, glass, etc.

Currently, the Czech Republic has 41 FDI projects in Vietnam with a total capital of US$92 million (ranking 50th out of 149), mainly concentrated in the processing, manufacturing, and mining industries. Areas of investment cooperation where the Czech Republic has strengths include energy, locomotives and rolling stock, buses, trams, agricultural machinery, and irrigation equipment. The Czech Republic is currently implementing a joint venture project to establish an automobile manufacturing plant between SKODA Auto Group and Thanh Cong Group in Quang Ninh province, worth US$450 million (expected to be operational in Q1 2025). In addition, the Czech Sev.en Global Investment Group is finalizing the remaining documents to acquire 51% of the shares in the Mong Duong 2 coal-fired power plant in Quang Ninh.

Vietnam has four investment projects in the Czech Republic. The Czech Republic was the first Eastern European country to provide ODA to Vietnam, totaling approximately 20 million USD. In 1994, it provided 14 million USD to support training and employment for Vietnamese workers returning from Czech Republic; in 1995 and 2008, it provided 2.8 million USD to build and modernize the Orthopedic Center for Disabled Children in Bac Thai (operational since May 1999); and it assisted in modernizing the Viet-Tiep Hospital in Hai Phong (1.4 million USD) and the Leather and Footwear Technical Training Center in Hai Phong (700,000 USD).

The Vietnamese community in Poland currently numbers around 25,000 people. Some Vietnamese expatriates in Poland have returned to Vietnam to invest relatively successfully, especially in the real estate and finance sectors.

The Vietnamese community in the Czech Republic is growing, numbering nearly 100,000 people. On July 3, 2013, the Czech government decided to add representatives of Czechs of Vietnamese origin to the Council of National Minorities, thereby recognizing the existence of Czechs of Vietnamese origin as the 14th ethnic minority of the Czech Republic (the third largest ethnic minority community in the Czech Republic, accounting for 1% of the population).

Thanhnien.vn

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/thu-tuong-pham-minh-chinh-cong-du-chau-au-185250114235047694.htm