As Vietnam – India relations continue to be consolidated and expand robustly, the upcoming state visit to India by General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee and State President To Lam is widely expected to inject fresh momentum into the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two countries.
In an interview granted to Vietnam News Agency (VNA) correspondents in New Delhi, Vietnamese Ambassador to India Nguyen Thanh Hai emphasized that the trip, scheduled for May 5–7, carries historic importance as it marks the first time a Vietnamese Party General Secretary and State President has paid a state visit to India. The timing, shortly after the successful 14th National Party Congress and the consolidation of key leadership positions by the National Assembly, underscores Vietnam’s high regard for India as a close friend and comprehensive strategic partner. It also reflects Vietnam’s consistent foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, self-strengthening, peace, friendship, cooperation and development, and diversification and multilateralisation of external relations.
According to the ambassador, the visit coincides with the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (2016–2026). Therefore, it is expected to provide an opportunity for leaders to review past achievements and shape future cooperation directions, especially in the context of both countries’ strong development trajectories and evolving regional and global changes.
He further highlighted that the visit will serve to deepen ties between the two countries’ leaders and ruling parties, while enhancing connectivity across ministries, sectors, localities and business communities. Particular emphasis will be placed on fostering collaboration among technology firms, startups and innovation hubs.
Overall, the visit is anticipated to open broader avenues for cooperation, elevate the bilateral relations to new heights, and deliver tangible benefits to citizens, localities and enterprises, thus helping to realise development goals in each nation, as well as to peace, stability and development in the region and the world, Ambassador Nguyen Thanh Hai affirmed.
Reflecting on a decade of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the diplomat held that Vietnam–India relations have developed comprehensively and effectively, emerging as one of the region’s most dynamic and meaningful partnerships. Political trust has continued to strengthen through frequent high-level exchanges and close coordination at international forums, including the United Nations and ASEAN-led mechanisms.
Defence and security collaboration has also expanded in both scope and substance, guided by the Joint Vision Statement on Vietnam-India Defence Partnership towards 2030. Areas such as training, capacity-building, joint exercises and participation in United Nations peacekeeping operations have been implemented effectively.
Economic, trade and investment ties have recorded notable growth. Bilateral trade reached a record of US$16.46 billion in 2025, marking a 10.5 percent increase from the previous year and approximately 2.5 times the figure recorded in 2016. India is now among Vietnam’s top eight trading partners. Investment flows have also progressed, with India running 473 active projects worth $1.1 billion in Vietnam, while Vietnamese enterprises are increasingly expanding into the Indian market, including large-scale initiatives such as electric vehicle manufacturing projects.
Cooperation in science and technology, innovation, digital transformation, energy and education has been further promoted. The ambassador also pointed to growing exchanges of students and increasing engagement between startups and technology firms. Meanwhile, people-to-people exchanges, cultural cooperation and tourism have emerged as bright spots, with Vietnam becoming an increasingly attractive destination for Indian visitors. Enhanced direct air connectivity – rising to nearly 90 weekly flights – has significantly boosted travel and exchanges.
For the coming period, the ambassador suggested both countries prioritise emerging areas of cooperation, particularly innovation and digital transformation, to harness opportunities from the ongoing technological revolution to achieve the goals of turning Vietnam into a developed country by 2045 and India into a similar status by 2047. He underscored the need to establish platforms and frameworks to facilitate collaboration in high-tech industries, the digital and green economy, renewable energy, semiconductors and artificial intelligence.
At the same time, continued efforts to strengthen economic, trade and investment cooperation were deemed essential, including measures to expand market access and further increase bilateral trade commensurate with the scale of both economies.
The ambassador also stressed the importance of promoting people-to-people exchanges, cultural, education and tourism cooperation to reinforce the social foundation of the bilateral ties. Shared cultural and historical linkages, particularly through Buddhism and heritage preservation, were highlighted as favourable conditions for deeper engagement.
The top Vietnamese leader’s visit will provide an important opportunity for both sides to discuss concrete measures to advance these priorities, thereby bringing practical benefits to the two countries’ people, localities and enterprises, and contributing to the realisation of each country’s development goals, he concluded.
