Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s official visit to Brunei Darussalam on February 10 and 11 is of great significance. It is the first trip in nearly 16 years by a Prime Minister of Vietnam to the Sultanate. In 2022, the two nations celebrated the 30th anniversary of their diplomatic ties.
Amid the growing bilateral relations, the visit shows the level of importance that Vietnam attaches to its ties with Brunei and other ASEAN countries. According to Tran Van Khoa, the Vietnamese Ambassador to Brunei, the Vietnamese Prime Minister’s visit will strengthen the comprehensive partnership between the two countries.
Since the establishment of bilateral ties between Brunei and Vietnam in 1992, the relations between the two countries have seen positive developments in many areas. They have mainly been trade, politics, culture, economy, and people-to-people exchanges. After the COVID-19 pandemic, the trade between these two countries has surpassed the target of US$ 500 million ahead of 2025.
The countries have also coordinated and supported each other at the United Nations, ASEAN-EU cooperation framework, and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). Brunei and Vietnam have also been working together to promote the centrality of the ASEAN. This has kept their relations thriving substantially for more than three decades.
Ambassador Khoa has suggested that the two sides must keep fostering the partnership between them. The outcomes of the meeting between His Majesty Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and Vietnam’s Prime Minister during the latter’s visit will certainly give a further boost to the ties between the two countries.