With more than 20 bilateral and multilateral activities during the Vietnamese prime minister’s three-day visit to Saudi Arabia for the ASEAN-Gulf Cooperation Council Summit, Vietnam bears fruit with a number of deals inked and messages delivered.

The visit, made at the invitation of Saudi Arabian King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, allowed Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh to join other leaders of Southeast Asian countries and Arab states of the Gulf gathered for the first ASEAN-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit since the two regions set up bilateral ties in 1990. 

Vietnam's Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (4th left) attends the ASEAN-GCC Summit in Riyadh on Oct 20. Photos: VGP

On the agenda of the trip, PM Chinh addressed the summit with some clear messages on the need for connections for further cooperation amid the changing world with Vietnam’s contributions to the joint efforts.

At the ASEAN-GCC Summit held in Saudi Arabia’s capital city of Riyadh on October 20, the Vietnamese prime minister called for joining hands in promoting resilience, utilizing resources, and taking substantive actions for effective collaboration.

PM Chinh underlined that the two sides must foster more favorable conditions for economics, trade, and investment to make them become the primary pillars, the driving force uniting the two regions, and complementing one another for mutual development and win-win approaches.

At the same time, the two sides should simultaneously encourage collaboration for more environmentally friendly and sustainable development.

His suggestions put forth were for ASEAN and the GCC to foster ties in three domains: human, cultural, and labor; trade, investment, and tourism; and infrastructure system, thereby enhancing global peace, stability, and prosperity.

So far, ASEAN members have highly appreciated that all GCC members have joined the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC) established in 1976. In 2022, two-way trade between the two regions reached US$142 billion and the number of Gulf visitors to ASEAN was more than 375,000. 

The leaders agreed that the ASEAN-GCC leaders’ summit should be held biennially.

Vietnam prioritizes cooperation with all six GCC nations: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in a variety of areas, including politics, diplomacy, trade, investment, and labor.

Last year, two-way trade with these nations totaled US$13.5 billion. To date, the GCC states have invested almost $1 billion in Vietnam. There are roughly 11,000 Vietnamese workers in the GCC.

The UAE and Vietnam are negotiating a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).

In the midst of the unrest in certain conflict-ridden regions, the prime minister underscored Vietnam’s positions on peaceful dispute resolution based on international law, which has garnered backing from numerous nations. 

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on Oct 20.

Bilaterally, PM Chinh held meetings with many leaders of ASEAN countries and Arab Gulf States to discuss directions for enhanced cooperation.

He met with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet where they discussed working together to put in place the tourism cooperation initiative “One Journey, Three Destinations” between Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam.

The meeting with Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone highlighted the valuable friendship between the neighboring countries and their determination to push forward the implementation of the Vietnam-Laos bilateral cooperation agreement for 2021-2023, the Vietnam-Laos Strategic Cooperation Agreement for 2021-2030, and other signed agreements in different fields.

In addition, they discussed removing obstacles to cooperation projects, such as Vung Ang Port No.1, 2, and 3 and transport ones connecting the two countries. At the meeting, the Lao prime minister said the operation of Nong Khang airport in May funded by Vietnam’s Hoang Anh Gia Lai Agriculture JSC contributes to enhancing economic and people-to-people ties. 

In the talks with Philippine President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr., the two leaders agreed that the relevant agencies of both countries should advance the signing of an inter-governmental agreement on rice trade.

In a meeting with Joko Widodo, Chinh and the Indonesian president agreed the two sides would expedite the early ratification of the agreement on the delineation of exclusive economic zones and efficiently carry out the signed agreements. They anticipate expanding the export-import of agricultural products to each other’s markets and signing a long-term trade agreement on rice exports.

Meanwhile, the talks between PM Chinh and Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong focused on upgrading bilateral relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership in due course.

They decided to instruct relevant agencies to study the viability of creating an association between the industrial zones of the two nations. They agreed to work together to create a common database that would aid in both nations’ digital transformation and stressed the importance of people-to-people links.

Apart from some ASEAN leaders, PM Chinh met with leaders of Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and UAE.

In talks with Oman’s Deputy Prime Minister Prince Sayyid Shihab bin Tarik Al Said, the Vietnamese prime minister said the two countries continue boosting cooperation mechanisms, including the Joint Committee and Political Consultation for enhanced ties, mainly in trade. Meanwhile, Al Said pledged to promote partnership in the halal sector and the efficiency of the Vietnam-Oman Investment Fund (VOI).

At the meeting with Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, PM Chinh reiterated that Vietnam values its cooperation with Qatar and views it as a key Middle Eastern partner. He expressed his wish to welcome the Emir of Qatar to Vietnam in November to promote trade, investment, and labor cooperation. He said Vietnam welcomes Qatari businesses and investment funds, particularly the Qatar Investment Authority.

The meeting with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan focused on high-ranking exchanges, cultural and tourism cooperation, food security, digital transformation, and innovation. They agreed to speed up negotiations of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).

PM Chinh’s busy agenda also included meetings with Saudi Arabian leaders. On this occasion, he met Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman and their talks emphasized Saudi Arabian investments, especially the Public Investment Fund (PIF) – one of the world’s 10 largest sovereign wealth funds, in innovation, high-tech, industry, and renewable energy.

With thousands of Vietnamese laborers employed in the Arab nation, PM Chinh expected the Saudi Arabian government and House of Saud to keep fostering an environment that is conducive to their needs.

On the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the diplomatic ties between the two countries, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia announced that he would visit Vietnam in 2024 at PM Chinh’s invitation. He stated that Vietnam is Saudi Arabia’s top Southeast Asian partner. He said he would give instructions to the PIF to increase investment in Vietnam.