Saudi Arabia's officials welcome Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính and his spouse on Tuesday. VNA/VNS Photos

RIYADH – Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính, his spouse and a high-ranking delegation of Việt Nam arrived at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Tuesday afternoon (local time), beginning their working trip to attend the 8th Edition of the Future Investment Initiative (FII) and working visit to Saudi Arabia.

The trip is being made at the invitation of Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia Mohammed Bin Salman.

The delegation was welcomed at the airport by officials of the Government and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia; Vietnamese Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Đặng Xuân Dũng, staff of the Vietnamese Embassy and representatives of the Vietnamese community in the Middle East country.

The visit is taking place in the context that Việt Nam and Saudi Arabia have enjoyed sound cooperation with practical outcomes since they set up their diplomatic relations in October 1999.

Over the past 25 years, the two sides have increased the exchange of delegations at all levels and organised many investment forums, contributing to promoting economic and trade cooperation as well as people-to-people exchange. Most recently, PM Chính attended the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) – Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit and visited Saudi Arabia in October 2023.

Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính, his spouse and a high-ranking delegation of Việt Nam arrived at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Tuesday afternoon (local time)

Saudi Arabia is currently Việt Nam's third largest trading partner in the Middle East - North Africa region, with two-way trade reaching US$2.68 billion in 2023. In the first nine months of 2024, the figure hit $2.21 billion.

As of September 2024, Saudi Arabia had ranked 79th out of the 148 countries and territories investing in Việt Nam with eight projects worth $8.57 million.

There are currently about 4,000 Vietnamese workers in Saudi Arabia in various fields such as construction, engineering, hospitality, and housekeeping. The two countries are working on a new labour cooperation agreement that is expected to be signed in the near future.

Basing on the strong foundation built in 25 the past years and commitments of the two countries’ leaders and people, the Việt Nam-Saudi Arabia relationship is expected to reach a new height in the future, meeting the aspirations and interest of both nations' people.

The PM’s ongoing working trip to Saudi Arabia is hoped to help the two sides reinforce their political trust and bring the bilateral relations to a new height, while creating breakthroughs in their cooperation in economy, trade, investment and new areas, bringing about new momentum for a new cooperation period between Việt Nam and Saudi Arabia - one of the countries with the largest economic scale and most important role in the Middle East - one of the world's most dynamically developing regions. VNS