Vietnamese Ambassador to Russia Đặng Minh Khôi (right) and First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council of Russia Andrey Yatskin at their meeting in Moscow on Thursday. VNA/VNS Photo

MOSCOW — Vietnamese Ambassador to Russia Đặng Minh Khôi had a working session with a delegation from the Russian Federation Council led by First Deputy Chairman Andrey Yatskin, in Moscow on Thursday, discussing the expansion of multifaceted cooperation in 2026.

At the meeting, Ambassador Khôi expressed his pleasure at the positive cooperation between the Federation Council and Việt Nam’s National Assembly in recent years, affirming Việt Nam’s desire to strengthen cooperation with Russia across all fields, particularly through expanded cooperation between localities.

The ambassador highlighted recent positive developments in bilateral ties, including the congratulatory message sent by President Vladimir Putin following the successful organisation of the 14th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam, as well as the signing of an agreement on cooperation in building Việt Nam’s first nuclear power plant.

He described these developments as an important step forward in elevating bilateral cooperation in economics, trade, education and training, while reaffirming Việt Nam’s wish for Russia to become a strategic partner in the oil and gas sector.

For his part, Yatskin stressed the important role of parliamentary cooperation in consolidating and deepening the Việt Nam–Russia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, while expressing his hope that localities of the two countries would further strengthen exchanges and cooperation.

He noted that a number of centrally governed cities and major provinces of the two countries had already established twinning relationships and proposed expanding such partnerships, particularly between Russia’s northern oil and gas-producing regions and Việt Nam’s coastal provinces.

Ambassador Khôi welcomed the proposals and pledged maximum support for future cooperation.

He also noted positive progress in other areas, including the growing number of Vietnamese students studying in Russia and the resumption of postgraduate training programmes for Vietnamese diplomats at Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO), one of Russia’s leading diplomatic training institutions.

Both sides expressed confidence that bilateral relations would continue to reach new milestones in 2026 through the effective implementation of agreements reached during recent high-level visits, contributing to the long-standing friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries. — VNA/VNS