Vietnamese Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng had a phone talk with Dutch counterpart Rob Jetten on August 11. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng and his Dutch counterpart Rob Jetten held high-level phone talks on Tuesday, agreeing on new directions to deepen Việt Nam–Netherlands relations and bring their comprehensive partnership to a new level.

The conversation took place in an open, sincere and trustful atmosphere, with the two Government leaders reviewing progress in bilateral cooperation and discussing ways to tap the two countries' considerable potential and complementary strengths.

PM Hưng congratulated the Netherlands on its socio-economic and foreign policy achievements and thanked the country for identifying Việt Nam as a leading strategic partner in the region under its new foreign policy.

He affirmed that Việt Nam attaches importance to its multifaceted cooperation with the Netherlands and wishes to deepen bilateral ties further.

Against the backdrop of rapid developments in the global and regional landscape, the two sides noted significant room for greater cooperation.

The Netherlands has strengths in science and technology, innovation and high-tech industries, while Việt Nam is entering a new development era with growing demand and new drivers for economic growth, science, technology and innovation.

The two PMs viewed these complementary strengths as an important foundation for expanding cooperation and elevating the comprehensive partnership.

PM Hưng proposed increasing exchanges of delegations, particularly at the high level, to strengthen political trust and work towards upgrading bilateral ties. He also called for continued coordination and mutual support at multilateral and international forums.

Highlighting the Netherlands' position as Việt Nam's largest investor among EU member states and one of its leading EU trading partners, the Vietnamese PM proposed making economic, trade, investment and financial cooperation key pillars of bilateral relations.

He called for the two sides to make fuller use of the EU–Việt Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), while encouraging the Dutch parliament to soon ratify the EU–Việt Nam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) to facilitate market expansion by businesses from both countries.

He also proposed connecting the two countries' financial and securities markets and attracting international resources to the development of Việt Nam's international financial centre and capital market.

PM Hưng called for more effective implementation of the two existing strategic partnerships on climate change response and water management, established in 2010, and on sustainable agriculture and food security, established in 2014.

He also proposed stronger cooperation in green and digital transformation and sustainable development, while making science, technology and innovation a new pillar of bilateral cooperation.

The Vietnamese PM suggested that the two sides soon finalise agreements on science and technology, innovation and semiconductor technology, with a focus on developing R&D centres, training high-quality human resources and connecting Vietnamese companies to the Netherlands' semiconductor companies, particularly with Dutch technology giant ASML.

In education, culture and people-to-people exchanges, he called on the Netherlands to provide more scholarships and expand opportunities for Vietnamese students to study priority fields such as artificial intelligence, semiconductors, science and technology, and the blue marine economy.

He also proposed that the Netherlands simplify visa procedures for Vietnamese tourists and continue supporting the Vietnamese community in the country to integrate successfully and serve as a bridge of friendship between the two countries.

For his part, PM Rob Jetten spoke highly of Việt Nam's ambitious development goals, particularly its target of maintaining double-digit GDP growth, describing this as a "huge opportunity" for the two countries to expand cooperation.

The Dutch PM said the Netherlands wants to become an important partner of Việt Nam in the region and is ready to expand and deepen bilateral relations, with a view to upgrading the partnership.

He expressed his wish to send Dutch business and other delegations to Việt Nam to explore and expand cooperation opportunities, thereby increasing the Netherlands' presence in the Vietnamese market and the wider region.

PM Jetten also praised the positive contributions of the Vietnamese community to Dutch society.

Regarding tourism and people-to-people exchanges, he highlighted Việt Nam's visa exemption for Dutch tourists and welcomed national carrier Vietnam Airlines' launch of a direct route between the two countries in June 2026, saying the connection would facilitate travel, strengthen people-to-people links, promote tourism and broaden bilateral cooperation.

PM Jetten stressed that the Netherlands is committed to actively accelerating the ratification of EVIPA.

The two PMs also exchanged views on regional and international issues of shared concern, stressing the strategic importance of maintaining peace, stability, security, safety and freedom of navigation and overflight in the region and around the world in accordance with international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

The first phone conversation between the Vietnamese and Dutch PMs concluded successfully, setting out new cooperation directions and opening promising prospects for the further development of the Việt Nam–Netherlands comprehensive partnership. — VNS