Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính leaves Hà Nội on Tuesday evening for a State visit to India. - VNA/VNS Photo Dương Giang

HÀ NỘI – Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính and a Vietnamese delegation left Hà Nội on Tuesday evening for a State visit to India from July 30 – August 1 at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

This is the first State visit to India by Chính as the head of the Vietnamese government, and the first visit to India by a Vietnamese PM in a decade.

The visit takes place when the Việt Nam-India comprehensive strategic partnership is developing strongly on the foundation of firm relations and high political trust. Bilateral ties across the party, state, parliamentary, and people-to-people channels have expanded, while defence-security cooperation, a key pillar in bilateral relations, has seen significant progress. Two-way trade has increased 2.5 times since 2016, reaching nearly US$15 billion in 2023.

Major Indian conglomerates are rolling out cooperation with Việt Nam in strategic sectors like renewable energy, processing industry, oil and gas, pharmaceuticals, seaport infrastructure, and logistics. Meanwhile, Việt Nam’s automaker Vinfast has started construction on a car assembly and production plant in Tamil Nadu state of India, with total committed capital of $2 billion.

The number of Indian visitors to Việt Nam shot up 2.5 times over the past four years, from 170,000 in 2019 to 400,000 in 2023. The two countries have supported each other and promoted cooperation at international and regional forums and organisations, especially the United Nations.

During the visit, PM Chính and Indian leaders are expected to outline directions for deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership across various fields, particularly trade-investment, renewable energy, processing, green economy, digital economy, pharmaceuticals, infrastructure, logistics, automobile, science-technology, information-communication technology, education-training, culture-tourism, agriculture, and people-to-people exchange. – VNS