Top leaders of Vietnam and Russia have discussed measures to enhance relations on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Strategic Partnership.

Secretary General of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Nguyen Phu Trong and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin in Sochi 2018. Photo: VGP

The affirmation for the prospect was once again made at a phone talk on April 5 between Secretary General of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.

The parties reaffirmed their commitment to the further development of the entire range of the bilateral relations that covers trade, the economy, energy, research and technology, as well as humanitarian ties.

The conversation also covered the outlook of the joint fight against Covid-19, including the supply of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine to Vietnam.

Trong and Putin exchanged views on current international issues with a focus on continued interaction within the framework of multilateral associations, including the UN and as part of the Russia-ASEAN dialogue.

Strategic partnership

In March 2001, Russia cemented the relation with Vietnam by upgrading it to strategic partnership – the first country to build such partnership with Vietnam.

As strategic partners, both Vietnam and Russia committed to helping each other in terms of defense and security, as well as in education, health, trade, investment and overall economic development.

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said that the strategic partnership between Russia and Vietnam was a natural result of decades-long fruitful collaboration between the two countries.

“The declaration of the diplomatic relationship, which was signed in Hanoi on March 1, 2001, materialized the Russian and Vietnamese peoples’ wish to progressively strengthen their intergovernmental relations based on many years of friendship and mutually advantageous cooperation,” Zakharova said in celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Strategic Partnership.

In 2012, the relations ware elevated to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, paving the way for increasing economic ties.

The Vietnam-Eurasian Economic Union Free Trade Agreement (EAEU) which took effect in October 2016 lifted trade and economic ties to a new level.

The two sides targeted to reach US$10 billion trade by 2020. So far, Russia is Vietnam’s largest provider of weaponry, equipment and technology.

In terms of investment, Russia ranked 24 among 129 countries and territories investing in Vietnam as of earlier 2020, showed statistics by Vietnam’s Ministry of Planning and Investment.

Among sectors, energy remains one of pillars in the Vietnam-Russia economic ties. For the past years, investment in oil and gas exploration and exploitation has been intensified.

Vietsovpetro, the joint venture by Zarubezhneft and PetroVietnam, produces one-third of Vietnam’s oil. The company said it produced an estimated 3.42 million metric ton of crude oil in 2020, down 8.8% on-year.

Meanwhile, big Russian oil and gas groups like Gazprom and Rosneft plan to engage in many more projects in Vietnam’s continental shelf by 2030.

For the future development, Vietnam and Russia set a range of fields they will focus on, including Russia’s support in e-government, smart cities, cybersecurity, technology transfer, and training of experts.