PM begins official visit to Singapore

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh arrived in Singapore on February 8 to begin his official visit to the city state.

During his three-day stay, the Prime Minister is expected to hold talks with his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong and meet President Halimah Yacob and Speaker of the Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin.

The visit is expected to raise economic cooperation between the two countries, which is seen as a highlight of bilateral ties. Singapore is Vietnam’s top economic partner in the region, with two-way trade reaching some $9 billion in 2022, up 10.1 per cent year-on-year.

With 3,032 active projects and total registered capital of $17.6 billion, Singapore is Vietnam’s largest Southeast Asian investor and second-largest foreign investor.

Vietnam - Singapore Industrial Parks in the north, central, and south of Vietnam are regarded as a symbol of economic cooperation between the two countries, creating jobs for more than 300,000 people.

During recent high-level visits between the countries’ leaders, the two sides agreed on certain cooperation orientations in a number of new fields, such as the digital economy, digital transformation, regional and global supply chain links, the green economy, and sustainable development.

Following his visit to Singapore, Prime Minister Chinh will then pay an official State visit to Brunei on February 10 and 11.

According to Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Do Hung Viet, the visits mark the first official trip to Singapore by a Vietnamese government leader in five years and to Brunei in nearly 16 years.

The visits are expected to deepen the strategic partnership with Singapore, an important economic partner of Vietnam, and the comprehensive partnership with Brunei, a promising economic partner.