Top leaders of Vietnam and France hold talks

Top leaders of Vietnam and France hold talks

France becomes first EU country to have comprehensive strategic partnership with Vietnam

Party General Secretary and President To Lam and French President Emmanuel Macron announced the upgrade of relations between the two countries to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during their talks in Paris on October 7 (local time), making France the first country in the European Union (EU) to establish this partnership with Vietnam, the Vietnam News Agency has reported.

Both sides also aligned on major directions and measures to ensure this partnership deepens and becomes more practical, fitting the new context of Vietnam-France cooperation.

Mr. Lam congratulated France and President Macron on successfully hosting the 2024 Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games, and especially 19th Francophonie Summit in October.

Once again congratulating Mr. Lam on his recent election, President Macron stressed this marks the first official visit by a Vietnamese head of state to France in 22 years.

The French President expressed his gratitude for Vietnam's attendance at the Francophonie Summit and other key events and offered condolences for the losses Vietnam suffered due to recent Typhoon Yagi, pledging France's support in recovery efforts.

Both sides agreed to enhance the exchange of all-level delegations, particularly those at the high level across Party, State, Government, and National Assembly channels.

Describing national defense-security cooperation as a critical pillar of their partnership, they vowed to effectively implement existing cooperation agreements, soon hold the Vietnam-France Defense Strategy and Cooperation Dialogue, assist in the training of officers, share experiences in crime prevention and control, and support each other at global and regional security forums.

The top Vietnamese leader  praised the recent visit by French Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu to Vietnam during the 70th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu Victory, noting that it demonstrates a spirit of respect for history and a commitment to a shared future.

On economic and trade matters, both leaders lauded the ongoing cooperation between their ministries, agencies, and localities. They pledged to continue promoting concessional loans and Official Development Assistance (ODA) for Vietnam and encouraging businesses to fully realize the benefits of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).

The Vietnamese leader urged France to expedite the ratification of the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) and sought France's support in advocating for the European Commission to lift the "yellow card" warning against Vietnamese seafood exports.

President Macron confirmed his commitment to recommending EVIPA ratification to the French Parliament promptly. He also praised Vietnam's commitment to the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) and green transition initiatives.

 

Both leaders agreed to strengthen joint work in areas of potential synergy and French expertise, including infrastructure, aerospace, sci-tech, renewable, and hydrogen energy.

The two sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in new areas such as aerospace, artificial intelligence, and airport transport infrastructure. They also consented to promote the training of high-quality human resources and continue to create opportunities for Vietnamese students to study in France with more scholarships. Additionally, both sides committed to expanding collaboration in the fields of ecological and circular agriculture, and trilateral cooperation between Vietnam, France, and global south countries to ensure global food security.

President Macron welcomed Vietnam's efforts in responding to climate change. Mr. Lam highly appreciated France's pioneering and leading role in the fight against climate change and expressed his hope that the two sides will continue to cooperate in developing ecosystem-based models on the basis of ensuring harmony of interests.

The French leader highly valued the role of the Vietnamese community in France as an important bridge between the two countries, and affirmed that he will continue to create favorable conditions for them to live and work in France.

The two sides spoke highly of ASEAN's central role in the region and pledged to continue promoting France-ASEAN and EU-ASEAN relations. They also committed to supporting each other at multilateral forums and international organizations such as the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), the ASEAN-EU cooperation framework, Francophonie, and the United Nations.

President Macron emphasized that France highly valued Vietnam's stance on ending violence, easing tensions, and calling on all parties to resolve conflicts in Ukraine, the Middle East, and other regions by peaceful means and in accordance with international law.

Regarding the East Sea issue, both sides reaffirmed the importance of ensuring peace, stability, security, safety, freedom of navigation and aviation, and resolving disputes peacefully in accordance with international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS 1982).

On this occasion, Mr. Lam invited Mr. Macron to visit Vietnam soon and the French leader accepted the invitation with pleasure. Many documents and cooperation agreements in the fields of diplomacy, culture, education, transportation, and internal affairs were signed by ministries, sectors, and localities of the two countries during the official visit of Vietnam’s top leader to France.

Before their talks, the two leaders held a press briefing, during which they highlighted the growing relationship between the two countries.

President Macron thanked Vietnam for inviting France to attend the ceremony marking the 70th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu Victory (May 7). French Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu was sent to the event.

 

He also appreciated the top Vietnamese leader’s attendance at the 19th Francophonie Summit and his official visit to France, as well as the friendly sentiments he and Vietnamese people give to France.

France wants to enhance cooperation with Vietnam, especially collaboration between their businesses, President Macron said, noting France stands ready to facilitate investment by Vietnamese enterprises and helps the Southeast Asian nation effectively implement its projects.

Apart from economy, France places importance on cooperation in education, health care, education research, and the preservation and promotion of cultural values and facilities, the French leader said.

The French Government is ready to work with Vietnam in support of cultural development movements and exchanges, he continued, lauding the country’s energy commitments and its climate change response.

President Macron stressed that Mr. Lam’s visit will contribute to strengthening the relations between France and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which plays a key role in regional stability and peace; adding that France attaches great importance to its relations with ASEAN.

For his part, the top Vietnamese leader said this is his first visit to France in his capacity as Party General Secretary and State President of Vietnam. It is also the first trip by a top leader of Vietnam to France over the past 22 years.

Congratulating France on its successful organization of Paris 2024 Olympics and the 19th Francophonie Summit, the Vietnamese leader said Vietnam supports contents of the joint declaration issued at the summit, with values of peace, cooperation, and sustainable development.

He said the Vietnam-France relationship has been growing across spheres, and that the European nation always holds an important position in his country’s foreign policy.

Mr. Lam suggested the two countries advance their relationship to a new high, saying with the decision, France would become the first country in the European Union to have a new, comprehensive relationship with Vietnam.

Committed to deepening bilateral ties, he expressed his hope that his upcoming talks with President Macron will discuss specific strategic orientations and measures across five areas to elevate Vietnam-France relations to a new level.

According to the Vietnamese leader, the first area is to deepen political cooperation, both bilaterally and multilaterally, in response to international challenges. Vietnam stands ready to work closely with France to usher in a new era of bilateral relations, enhancing dialogue and exchanges at all levels and across all party, government, and parliament channels as well as increasingly boosting the effectiveness of and expanding their bilateral cooperation mechanisms.

Concerned about the escalating conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, and the complex developments in the East Sea, Vietnam is willing to collaborate with France to contribute responsibly to seeking peaceful solutions, for cooperation and development in each region and in the world, the Vietnamese leader pledged.

The second focuses on increasing political trust through joint work in defense and security, while the third highlights the importance of stronger economic partnership to step up trade and innovation, according to Mr. Lam.

The fourth is about increasing cooperation for sustainable development and resilience toward balancing socio-economic development and environmental protection; and  the fifth involves promoting people-to-people exchanges, contributing to strengthening their people's solidarity and mutual understanding, the Vietnamese leader told the press briefing.

With determination of the two countries’ leaders and people as well as an over-300,000-strong Vietnamese community in France, the top leader of Vietnam said he is confident that bilateral ties will thrive and the European nation will engage more actively and extensively in a new era, the era of Vietnam's rise.

Following the press conference,  the two leaders witnessed the signing of two important cooperation documents between Vietnam and France. They included an educational cooperation agreement between the two governments and a contract for the supply and maintenance of engines for 200 narrow-body aircraft between Vietnamese carrier Vietjet Air and France's aircraft equipment manufacturers Safran and CFM International.