Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng (left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin met on the sidelines of the ASEAN–Russia Summit in Kazan, Russia. — VNA/VNS Photos

MOSCOW — Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on June 18, as part of his trip for the ASEAN–Russia Commemorative Summit and bilateral activities in Russia.

President Putin thanked the Vietnamese side for its close coordination and active contributions to the success of the ASEAN–Russia Commemorative Summit marking the 35th anniversary of their ties.

He singled out Việt Nam as one of Russia’s most important partners and a close friend in the region, a key bridge to ASEAN and a driver of Russia’s cooperation initiatives there. He highly valued concrete gains in bilateral cooperation, above all steadily deepening political trust, which he called a solid foundation for expanding ties across the board.

Recalling recent meetings with Vietnamese leaders, President Putin sent his best regards to General Secretary of the Communist Party of Việt Nam Central Committee and State President Tô Lâm and other key officials. He voiced confidence that PM Hưng and the new Vietnamese Government would keep working with Russia to further strengthen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership on multiple fronts.

PM Hưng, in reply, expressed his pleasure at visiting Russia for the first time in his new capacity. He conveyed greetings from General Secretary and President Lâm and other Vietnamese Party and State leaders to President Putin, and congratulated the success of the ASEAN–Russia Commemorative Summit, saying that it has contributed to substantive and mutually beneficial cooperation between Russia and ASEAN member states.

The Vietnamese Party, State, and Government always consider Russia one of the most important partners in Việt Nam’s foreign policy, he said, stressing that despite complex global developments, the traditional friendship between Việt Nam and Russia continues to gain ground across multiple fields.

He affirmed that Việt Nam’s new Government wishes to work closely with the Russian Government to push forward agreements reached between General Secretary and President Lâm and President Putin, thereby elevating bilateral ties comprehensively.

Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday afternoon.

The guest noted that following General Secretary Lâm’s visit to Russia in May 2025, Vietnamese leaders instructed relevant agencies to draw up concrete plans for agreed-upon outcomes and regularly report progress. On that basis, he proposed that Russia continue to encourage both sides to turn those agreements into concrete results.

During the meeting, PM Hưng and President Putin discussed directions and measures to create breakthroughs so that bilateral cooperation can deliver more tangible outcomes, strengthen the foundation of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, and serve the development goals of both countries.

The two sides agreed to increase regular and substantive dialogue through all channels and at all levels; maintain exchanges between senior leaders to promptly discuss bilateral and multilateral issues. They affirmed that defence and security cooperation remains a strategic pillar of bilateral ties and concurred to further strengthen collaboration in cybersecurity and exchanges between military personnel of the two countries.

Noting that Việt Nam–Russia cooperation is entering a period of significant opportunities and potential, PM Hưng and President Putin agreed to accelerate negotiations for the early implementation of the Ninh Thuận 1 Nuclear Power Plant project. They affirmed that cooperation in energy, oil and gas, and nuclear power is one of the key pillars of bilateral relations and should be implemented in line with the agreed roadmap.

The two leaders also agreed on a number of directions for future cooperation in such areas as trade and investment, science and technology, education and training, transport, culture and tourism, with the aim of deepening bilateral collaboration.

In economic and trade cooperation, the two sides expressed their determination to raise bilateral trade to US$15 billion in the near future. They consented to continue collaboration in mining, transport, shipbuilding, railway modernisation, the expansion of transport corridors, including international intermodal railway routes through China.

PM Hưng proposed that Russia create more favourable conditions for Vietnamese products, particularly agricultural goods, to gain greater access to the Russian market. He also called for the removal of restrictions on certain Vietnamese seafood processing facilities exporting to Russia and the expansion of the list of enterprises eligible to export seafood products to Russia and other member states of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).

The Vietnamese leader further suggested that Russia consider negotiations to amend the Free Trade Agreement between Việt Nam and the EAEU, including the complete removal of safeguard measures applied to Vietnamese textile, garment and footwear exports to Russia and the EAEU market.

Regarding tourism, education and people-to-people exchanges, President Putin expressed his desire to expand the teaching and learning of the Russian language in Southeast Asia, including Việt Nam, and reaffirmed Russia’s continued support for Vietnamese students studying in the country.

The two sides agreed to promote tourism cooperation and people-to-people exchanges, expedite the establishment of a Vietnamese Cultural Centre in Russia, consider the construction of a Russian school in Hà Nội, and organise a Russian Cultural Season in Việt Nam in 2027.

On the occasion, PM Hưng invited President Putin to attend the APEC Economic Leaders’ Week, scheduled to be held in Phú Quốc, Việt Nam, in 2027. He expressed his belief that the participation of President Putin and the Russian delegation would contribute to promoting cooperation, development, peace and stability in the region and the world. — VNA/VNS