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Elevating Ties: Vietnam and France Upgrade Relations to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership

8 October, 2024

General Secretary and President To Lam and French President Emmanuel Macron – Photo: International Newspaper

Accepting the invitation of President Emmanuel Macron, General Secretary and President To Lam paid an official visit to France from October 6-7, 2024. After the grand welcoming ceremony on October 7, 2024 (local time) at the Élysée Palace, Paris, General Secretary and President To Lam held talks with President Emmanuel Macron.

General Secretary and President To Lam expressed his gratitude for the warm, respectful, and thoughtful reception by the French state, government, and National Assembly, as well as President Macron himself, for the Vietnamese high-ranking delegation. He affirmed that Vietnam always values the Vietnam-France Strategic Partnership and congratulated France and President Macron on the successful organization of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, as well as the 19th Francophonie Summit (October 2024), which contributed to affirming France’s important role and position on the international stage.

President Macron once again congratulated the General Secretary and President To Lam on his election to the new position; emphasizing that this is the first official visit to France by a Vietnamese head of state in 22 years and affirming the upgrade of relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, in line with the cooperation framework and aspirations of both countries. He also thanked Vietnam for its participation in the Francophonie Summit and related events such as the Francotech Forum and Francophonie Village.

President Macron expressed his condolences for the losses caused by Storm Yagi and affirmed his support for Vietnam in overcoming its consequences.

In an atmosphere of trust and candor, General Secretary and President To Lam and President Macron comprehensively exchanged views on the economic and social situation of each country, bilateral cooperation, and regional and international issues of mutual interest. The two leaders expressed their delight at the positive developments in the relationship between the two countries, especially in politics, diplomacy, security, defense, trade, and investment. They agreed to enhance exchanges of delegations at all levels, particularly high-level visits through Party, State, Government, and National Assembly channels.

The two leaders agreed to declare the upgrade of relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and identified major orientations and measures to deepen the Vietnam-France Comprehensive Strategic Partnership framework, making it more practical and suitable for the new context. With this decision, France becomes the first country in the EU to have a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with Vietnam.

They assessed that security-defense cooperation is one of the important pillars; agreeing to effectively implement the signed cooperation agreements, soon organize the Security-Defense Strategic Dialogue, coordinate and support in officer training, share experiences in crime prevention and combat, and support each other at regional and global security forums. General Secretary and President To Lam appreciated the visit of the French Minister of the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu, to Vietnam on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu Victory, which demonstrated a spirit of respect for history and “putting the past behind”, and looking towards the future.

General Secretary and President To Lam held talks with French President Emmanuel Macron – Photo: VNA

Regarding economic and trade relations, the two sides appreciated the cooperation between ministries, sectors, and localities of the two countries in this field; agreeing to continue promoting preferential loans and ODA for Vietnam, and encouraging agencies and enterprises of the two countries to effectively implement the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA). General Secretary and President To Lam requested France to soon complete the process of ratifying the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA); appreciated Vietnam’s efforts in sustainable fisheries transformation; and supported the European Commission (EC) in soon removing the “yellow card” for Vietnamese seafood.

For his part, President Macron affirmed that the EVFTA is an important driving force for the economic and trade relations between the two sides and confirmed that he would soon propose to the National Assembly for the approval of the EVIPA.

The French President highly valued Vietnam’s commitment to the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) and green transformation. The two sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in areas with potential and France’s strengths, such as infrastructure, aerospace, science and technology, renewable energy, and hydrogen energy.

Acknowledging the positive results of cooperation in science and technology, the two sides agreed to enhance collaboration in new fields such as aerospace, artificial intelligence, and airport infrastructure.

In the fields of healthcare and education, the two sides agreed to promote the training of high-quality human resources and continue to create favorable conditions for Vietnamese students to study in France with more scholarships. They also encouraged the people of the two countries to participate in each other’s major cultural events.

Regarding agricultural cooperation, the two sides agreed to expand cooperation in ecological agriculture, circular agriculture, and tripartite cooperation between Vietnam, France, and Southern countries to ensure global food security.

President Macron welcomed Vietnam’s efforts in responding to climate change. General Secretary and President To Lam, in turn, appreciated France’s pioneering and leading role in the fight against climate change and wished for continued cooperation in developing ecosystem-based models and enhancing the resilience of cities and coastal areas, especially the Mekong Delta, in a harmonious manner.

President Macron highly regarded the role of the Vietnamese community in France, considering them an important bridge between the two countries, and affirmed that he would continue to create favorable conditions for the Vietnamese community to live and work in France.

On multilateral cooperation, the two sides appreciated the central role of ASEAN in the region; committed to continue promoting France-ASEAN relations as well as EU-ASEAN relations; and to continue supporting each other at multilateral forums and international organizations such as ASEM, ASEAN-EU cooperation framework, Francophonie, and the United Nations.

On regional and international issues, President Macron emphasized that France highly valued Vietnam’s views on ending violence, de-escalating tensions, and calling on all parties to resolve conflicts in Ukraine, the Middle East, and other regions through peaceful means, respecting international law. On the issue of the South China Sea, the two sides reaffirmed the importance of ensuring peace, stability, security, safety, and freedom of navigation and overflight, and resolving disputes by peaceful means in accordance with international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of Sea (UNCLOS 1982).

On this occasion, General Secretary and President To Lam invited President Macron to visit Vietnam soon. President Macron gladly accepted the invitation and agreed to visit Vietnam at an appropriate time.

During the visit, several cooperation documents in the fields of diplomacy, culture, education, transportation, interior, and others were signed by relevant ministries, sectors, and localities of the two countries.

Nhat Quang