Minister of Foreign Affairs Lê Hoài Trung (left) paid an official visit to Myanmar and co-chaired the 10th meeting of the Vietnam-Myanmar Joint Committee for Bilateral Cooperation on August 25-26, 2026. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The official visit to Việt Nam by Myanmar President Min Aung Hlaing and his spouse from September 4-6 will provide fresh impetus for the Việt Nam-Myanmar Comprehensive Cooperative Partnership to develop substantively and effectively, bringing practical benefits to the people of both countries, Vietnamese Ambassador to Myanmar Nguyễn Anh Đức has said.

Việt Nam and Myanmar share a traditional friendship and are both members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The two countries officially established diplomatic relations on May 28, 1975, but ties between their people date back much further. President Hồ Chí Minh and General Aung San laid an early foundation for bilateral friendship, with Myanmar President U Nu visiting Việt Nam in November 1954 and President Hồ Chí Minh visiting Myanmar in February 1958.

Over more than 50 years, the bilateral ties have steadily developed across various fields. The two countries upgraded their relations to a Comprehensive Cooperative Partnership in August 2017.

Việt Nam consistently attaches importance to cooperation with Myanmar and supports its socio-economic development and national reconciliation. Myanmar, for its part, values Việt Nam’s development achievements and prioritises strengthening the Comprehensive Cooperation Partnership, while facilitating Vietnamese businesses’ investment and operations in the country.

The two countries have also supported each other in times of difficulty. Following Myanmar’s devastating earthquake on March 28, 2025, Việt Nam promptly sent a more than 100-member rescue and relief team comprising military and public security personnel, together with medical supplies and essential goods, and provided US$300,000 in aid for the country's recovery efforts. In August 2024, the Việt Nam Red Cross Society also provided $200,000 to its Myanmar counterpart to help address the aftermath of Typhoon Mocha.

High-level exchanges have been maintained. Most recently, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lê Hoài Trung paid an official visit to Myanmar and co-chaired the 10th meeting of the Việt Nam-Myanmar Joint Committee for Bilateral Cooperation on August 25-26, 2026, helping to consolidate the bilateral ties and promote practical cooperation.

At the meeting, the two countries agreed to strengthen cooperation through Party, State, Government, parliamentary and local channels, as well as people-to-people diplomacy, toward the 10th anniversary of their Comprehensive Cooperative Partnership in 2027.

They identified infrastructure, information technology, consumer goods manufacturing, agriculture and digital transformation as priority areas, and set a goal of soon raising two-way trade to US$1 billion. The two sides also agreed to enhance defence and security cooperation, including training, young officers’ exchanges, disaster response, humanitarian assistance, bomb and mine clearance and military medicine.

Expanding economic cooperation

Economic and trade ties are a bright spot in the bilateral relations, with two-way trade averaging about $500 million annually. In the first six months of 2026, bilateral trade reached $336.28 million, up 26.3 per cent year-on-year. Maintaining this pace could bring full-year trade to $670-750 million.

As of June 2026, Việt Nam had 107 valid investment projects in Myanmar with total registered capital of $1.4 billion. Major Vietnamese investors include Mytel in telecommunications and digital infrastructure, HAGL Myanmar Center/THACO in property and commercial services, and the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) and other firms in banking, manufacturing and agriculture.

Vietnamese businesses see significant potential for cooperation in agriculture and food processing, energy, digital infrastructure, essential goods and reconstruction, logistics and finance.

Ambassador Đức said Myanmar remains a promising market, with Vietnamese products generally matching local consumer preferences. He called for stronger political trust and economic cooperation, particularly in agriculture, fisheries, food processing, telecommunications and electric vehicle manufacturing, alongside greater cultural, tourism, educational and people-to-people exchanges and more direct air routes.

He also stressed the need for closer coordination at ASEAN and Mekong sub-regional mechanisms.

Against this backdrop, President Min Aung Hlaing’s visit is particularly significant as this is his first official visit to Việt Nam since Myanmar completed its general election in January and formed a new government in April 2026.

The visit is expected to strengthen traditional friendship and political trust, expand bilateral and multilateral cooperation, and demonstrate Việt Nam’s proactive, constructive and responsible role in supporting ASEAN’s efforts to promote peace, stability and sustainable development in Myanmar and the wider region, while contributing to ASEAN Community building. — VNA/VNS