National Assembly Chairman Trần Thanh Mẫn and Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong in Hà Nội on Wednesday. — VNA/VNS Photo Doãn Tấn

HÀ NỘI — National Assembly (NA) Chairman Trần Thanh Mẫn held a meeting in Hà Nội on Wednesday with Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, who affirmed Singapore’s commitment to deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership with Việt Nam across all sectors, including legislative collaboration.

The top legislator held that Wong's official visit, along with Party General Secretary Tô Lâm’s recent official visit to Singapore in the context that the two sides are celebrating important milestones such as Việt Nam’s 80th National Day, Singapore’s 60th National Day, and the 30th anniversary of Việt Nam’s ASEAN membership, reflects the strong and trusted political ties between the two countries.

He highly valued Singapore’s role in supporting Việt Nam’s market economy development and international integration, as well as Singapore’s valuable experience in building a rule-of-law state, fostering a knowledge-based economy, promoting innovation, and ensuring sustainable development.

The leader expressed his pleasure at the strong and substantive growth of Việt Nam-Singapore relations over the past more than five decades, particularly in economic, trade, and investment cooperation.

In 2024, bilateral trade reached US$10.3 billion, while Singapore remained Việt Nam’s second-largest foreign investor, with cumulative investments exceeding $80 billion. The Việt Nam-Singapore Industrial Parks (VSIP) have been seen as a model of successful cooperation, he noted.

NA Chairman Mẫn also highlighted progress in cooperation in defence-security, education and training, science and technology, tourism, labour, and people-to-people exchanges.

He emphasised that the comprehensive strategic partnership marks a milestone in bilateral relations, praising the recent contributions of parliamentary cooperation between Việt Nam and Singapore.

The two legislatures are effectively implementing the cooperation agreement signed in May 2022, as well as the shared perceptions reached during Mẫn’s visit to Singapore in December 2024.

He stressed the importance of maintaining high-level exchanges and cooperation between legislative committees and agencies, friendship parliamentary groups, and young and female parliamentarians.

The two sides have exchanged legislative experience and agreed to work together to oversee the implementation of agreements. They will maintain mutual support at regional and international inter-parliamentary forums such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA), the NA leader noted.

For his part, Wong said he is impressed by Việt Nam’s socio-economic achievements, particularly its high, stable economic growth despite global and regional uncertainties.

He highlighted new areas of cooperation, including food security, green economy, digital transformation, and renewable energy. The Singaporean PM also emphasised the importance of further developing the VSIP 2.0 model.

He praised the role of the Vietnamese NA in creating a favourable legal framework for socio-economic development and international cooperation.

Mẫn pledged that the Vietnamese NA will back Singaporean businesses and foreign investors in Việt Nam. He expressed confidence that bilateral economic and trade cooperation will expand and improve in quality in the coming years.

Việt Nam seeks to learn from Singapore’s expertise in building an innovation ecosystem, digital transformation, and developing a high-quality workforce, he said.

He also affirmed Việt Nam’s readiness to create favourable conditions for Singaporean businesses to expand their investments, especially in high-tech industries, renewable energy, and high-value-added supporting industries.

At the meeting, the two sides underscored the importance of building a united and self-reliant ASEAN community and promoting the bloc's centrality, as well as the crucial role of the AIPA.

They also vowed to continue close cooperation and mutual support at multilateral forums and organisations, including regional and global inter-parliamentary forums, while maintaining an environment of peace and stability. They shared the view that disputes in the East Sea (internationally known as the South China Sea) should be settled through peaceful measures. — VNA/VNS