Vietnamese President Võ Văn Thưởng. — VNA/VNS Photo Thống Nhất

LONDON — President Võ Văn Thưởng today leads a Vietnamese delegation to attend the coronation of King Charles III of the United Kingdom from today to Saturday. 

Speaking to Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reporter in London, the Vietnamese ambassador to the UK, Nguyễn Hoàng Long, said that the visit is of significant importance regarding high-level foreign affairs.

“The President’s participation at the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla shows that Việt Nam gives high regard and support to the Royal Family, the UK Government and the Việt Nam-UK strategic partnership,” said Long. 

President Thưởng is scheduled to meet King Charles III and Queen Camilla, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and a number of the UK Cabinet members, including the minister of defence, the minister of foreign affairs, the minister of business and trade, and the secretaries of state for Scotland and Wales. 

The Vietnamese President is also expected to meet the House of Commons leaders, several parliament members, former PM Tony Blair, and representatives of UK businesses, universities, organisations and individuals who have made significant contributions to the two countries’ bilateral ties. 

This year also sees the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Việt Nam and the UK. 

They established official relations in 1973 and a strategic partnership in 2010. 

In recent years, despite the pandemic, the two countries have maintained high-level delegation exchanges and bilateral cooperation mechanisms between the ministries of foreign affairs in the Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) and dialogues on defence policy and migration. 

Their cooperation in trade and investment also saw positive results, with the UK being Việt Nam’s third-largest trade partner and ninth-largest export market. 

The UK-Việt Nam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) was also signed and took effect from May 1, 2021. 

In the two years that followed, during the COVID-19 pandemic, two-way trade continuously increased with the rates of 16.4 per cent in 2021 and 6.5 per cent in 2022. 

Last year, under the coordination of the UK Government, Việt Nam and the Group of Seven (G7) adopted the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP), which is expected to open up opportunities in energy transition, green growth and sustainable development. 

Vietnamese ambassador Long said: “We hope that in the future, the UK and G7 will work with Việt Nam to effectively implement JETP through specific activities, such as support in training, enhancing human resources quality in the energy sector, research for technology transfer, increasing attraction for green finance, and cooperation opportunities between Vietnamese and G7 businesses.”

The UK also concluded the negotiations to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) on March 31 this year. 

Alongside the UKVFTA, the CPTPP is expected to contribute to the legal framework for developing trade and economic relations between the two countries, said Long. — VNS