Minister of Foreign Affairs Lê Hoài Trung meets with Canadian Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu in Hà Nội on Thursday. — VNA/VNS Photo An Đăng

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam attaches great importance to strengthening its Comprehensive Partnership with Canada, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lê Hoài Trung said as he welcomed Canadian Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu to Hà Nội on Thursday.

The Vietnamese foreign minister noted that Canada’s active engagement with the world and the Asia-Pacific, together with shared strategic interests, offers a solid foundation for expanding cooperation, addressing common challenges and lifting bilateral relations to a higher level.

Trung asked Sidhu to convey Party General Secretary Tô Lâm’s thanks and New Year greetings to Governor General Mary May Simon, and expressed appreciation for her congratulatory letter following his re-election as General Secretary of the Communist Party of Việt Nam.

The Vietnamese diplomat welcomed positive developments in the Comprehensive Partnership, especially in trade and investment, with two-way trade surpassing US$8.5 billion in 2025.

He also thanked Canada for supporting ASEAN’s and Việt Nam’s stance on resolving disputes peacefully in line with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

For his part, Sidhu said he was pleased to make his first visit to Việt Nam and attend the inauguration of the new Canadian embassy premises.

He also congratulated Việt Nam on the success of the 14th National Party Congress and voiced confidence in the country’s advancement in a new development phase.

He described Việt Nam as Canada’s top priority partner in ASEAN and highlighted significant room for expanded cooperation in trade and investment, science and technology, education and training, environmental protection and climate change response.

Sidhu added that regular high-level exchanges and effective implementation of bilateral and multilateral mechanisms, particularly leveraging both countries’ membership of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), with Việt Nam serving as rotating chair in 2026, will generate new momentum for cooperation and contribute to regional and global peace, stability and development.

The two ministers agreed on measures to advance the Comprehensive Partnership, pledging to facilitate cooperation in trade and investment, defence and security, official development assistance, tourism and people-to-people exchanges.

They also discussed expanding collaboration in emerging areas such as supply chains, AI, semiconductors, quantum technology, clean energy transition, renewable energy, green agriculture, environmental protection and climate change response.

They also consented to coordinate and support each other as Việt Nam prepares to host APEC Year 2027 and to further strengthen Canada–ASEAN relations. — VNA/VNS