Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính departs Hà Nội from Nội Bài International Airport on Tuesday for the US visit. — VNA/VNS Photo Dương Giang

HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính and the Vietnamese delegation left Hà Nội on Tuesday afternoon for the US to attend the ASEAN-US Special Summit at the invitation of US President Joe Biden.

The Prime Minister will join other leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members at the summit on May 12-13 and make a working visit to the US and the United Nations from May 11-17. 

Accompanying the PM during the trip are Minister of Public Security Tô Lâm; Minister, Chairman of the Government Office Trần Văn Sơn; Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn; Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyễn Chí Dũng; Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyễn Hồng Diên; Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Đào Ngọc Dung; Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Trần Hồng Hà; Minister of Information and Communications Nguyễn Mạnh Hùng; Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Lê Minh Hoan; Minister of Science and Technology Huỳnh Thành Đạt; Governor of the State Bank of Việt Nam Nguyễn Thị Hồng; Deputy Minister of National Defence Phạm Hoài Nam and Vietnamese Ambassador to the United States Nguyễn Quốc Dũng.

This is the first visit of the PM to the US since the 13th National Congress of the Communist Party of Việt Nam (NPC) held in early 2021. This is also the first external activity of ASEAN to take place outside of ASEAN since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The PM's trip is to implement the foreign policy in accordance with the resolution of the congress on continuing to promote and improve the effectiveness of foreign affairs and international integration, and to continue to carry out the Party Central Committee Secretariat’s Directive 25 on enhancing and elevating multilateral diplomacy until 2030 and Conclusion 12–KL/TW dated August 12, 2021 of the Politburo on overseas Vietnamese affairs in a new period. — VNS