Delegates at the event.   VNA/VNS Photo

MOSCOW — The International Trade Day Forum 2025 (IDT-2025) took place at the World Trade Centre in Moscow on Friday, bringing together more than one thousand delegates from over thirty Russian regions and fifteen countries.

Organised by the Russian Association of Exporters and Importers, the forum is considered one of Russia’s major platforms for promoting trade and international economic cooperation. Việt Nam participated as a partner country, with its delegation led by Vietnamese Ambassador to Russia Đặng Minh Khôi.

Plenary discussions focused on global economic trends and their impact on Russia, as well as the country’s priorities in external economic policy. Delegates exchanged views on strengthening supply chains and expanding cooperation, particularly with BRICS members, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).

In his remarks, Ambassador Khôi reviewed Việt Nam’s economic transformation over nearly four decades of reform and integration.

He noted that Việt Nam has become Russia’s largest trading partner in Southeast Asia, while Russia is among Việt Nam’s top five European partners. Despite complex global conditions, bilateral trade grew strongly in 2024, reaching US$4.6 billion, up twenty-six per cent from the previous year. In the first eight months of 2025, trade volume rose to $3.3 billion, an increase of five per cent year-on-year. Key projects are underway in energy, science, and technology.

The ambassador stressed Việt Nam’s competitive advantages, being ranked among the top thirty fastest-growing trading nations and among the fifteen leading developing economies in attracting foreign direct investment.

He encouraged businesses from both countries to explore cooperation in industry, food processing, high technology, and renewable energy. He also urged greater efforts to share information, improve the business environment, and organise trade fairs, exhibitions, and business delegations to strengthen mutual understanding and trust.

He further proposed a roadmap to translate these opportunities into concrete, mutually beneficial projects, including boosting two-way trade and expanding market access.

He voiced confidence that the traditional friendship between Việt Nam and Russia will serve as a solid foundation for stronger business partnerships contributing to shared prosperity.

Việt Nam’s Trade Counselor in Moscow Dương Hoàng Minh shared that the forum offered a valuable chance for Vietnamese firms to deepen their understanding of the Russian market, seek new clients, and navigate legal frameworks for exports.

He highlighted that Vietnamese businesses are returning to Russia, while many Russian delegations have recently explored the Vietnamese market. With support from both governments, challenges in payments, transport, and logistics are gradually being resolved.

He noted that companies can now conduct transactions in local currencies and ship goods directly between Hải Phòng and HCM City ports of Việt Nam and Russia’s Vladivostok. These new arrangements, he said, create favourable conditions for Vietnamese enterprises to expand exports not only to Russia but also across the Eurasian market. — VNA/VNS