As part of the State Visit to the Republic of India, on the afternoon of May 6 in New Delhi, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Viet Nam Central Committee, President of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam To Lam and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with the press.
Speaking at the event, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his pleasure at welcoming General Secretary, President To Lam and affirmed that the visit would contribute to advancing cooperation between the two countries.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasized that Viet Nam was India’s first strategic partner within Association of Southeast Asian Nations and noted that the two sides had elevated bilateral relations to a new level by upgrading ties to an Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. In recent years, economic and trade cooperation between the two countries has grown strongly, with both sides striving to raise bilateral trade turnover to USD 25 billion by 2030.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the two sides had agreed on several measures, including deeper pharmaceutical cooperation; promoting agricultural trade; updating the ASEAN–India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) to create new momentum for trade and investment between India and ASEAN countries; focusing on supply chain stability and infrastructure development; and prioritizing stronger cooperation between the financial institutions of both sides. New cooperation initiatives in minerals, rare earths, and energy are expected to contribute to strengthening economic security and enhancing the resilience of supply chains in both countries.
General Secretary. President To Lam expressed his pleasure at visiting India in his capacity as General Secretary of the Communist Party of Viet Nam and President of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, while congratulating India on its development achievements. He noted that India is rising strongly and affirming its role as an important global center of growth and innovation.
General Secretary, President To Lam stated that the two sides highly appreciated the achievements of more than 50 years of bilateral relations and 10 years of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, reaffirming that both countries attach high priority to further developing Viet Nam–India relations. The two sides share common visions regarding regional and global affairs and reached broad consensus on the strategic importance of Viet Nam–India relations, expressing their desire to strengthen connectivity between the development visions and strategies of the two countries in order to better respond to global changes and challenges.
The two sides agreed to elevate bilateral relations to an Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership under the spirit of “Shared Vision, Strategic Convergence and Substantive Cooperation,” bringing bilateral cooperation to greater depth. They agreed to further deepen political trust, strengthen high-level exchanges, and enhance the effectiveness of existing cooperation mechanisms; elevate defense and security cooperation into a strategic pillar; create breakthroughs in economic, trade, and investment cooperation; and make science and technology, innovation, and digital transformation new drivers of cooperation, opening up high value-added development sectors. The two sides also agreed to strengthen people-to-people exchanges, cultural cooperation, and educational exchanges, thereby consolidating a sustainable social foundation for bilateral relations.
General Secretary, President To Lam emphasized that the two sides agreed to strengthen close coordination at regional and international forums and contribute to maintaining peace, stability, security, and development in the region and the world on the basis of respect for international law, the United Nations Charter, and the fundamental principles of international law, while protecting the legitimate rights and interests of nations and ensuring that the voices of developing countries are heard. Viet Nam supports India playing a greater role and position in multilateral mechanisms and looks forward to effective coordination with India in addressing common regional and global challenges.
The two sides reaffirmed the importance of maintaining a peaceful and stable environment and ensuring security, safety, and freedom of navigation and overflight, while resolving disputes through peaceful means in accordance with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS 1982). They also agreed to continue promoting activities within the framework of the ASEAN–India Maritime Cooperation Year 2026. Viet Nam encouraged India to further strengthen connectivity with ASEAN and the Mekong sub-region.
On this occasion, the two sides signed numerous important cooperation documents and agreed to direct their ministries and agencies to promptly and effectively implement the agreements reached, ushering the Enhanced Viet Nam–India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership into a new stage of development.
Source: Nhan Dan Online; Photo: People’s Army Newspaper Online
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