Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Lê Anh Tuấn (L) meets with Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs Badr Abdelatty in Cairo. VNA/VNS Photo

CAIRO — Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Lê Anh Tuấn paid a working visit to Egypt from September 16 to 18, with a view to promoting the two countries' Comprehensive Partnership and strengthening bilateral cooperation across a range of areas.

During the visit, he met with Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs Badr Abdelatty and Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Mohamed Farid Saleh, co-chaired the 11th Việt Nam–Egypt political consultation, and held working sessions with the League of Arab States and the Vietnamese Embassy in Egypt.

Receiving Tuấn, Abdelatty highly valued Việt Nam's international standing and welcomed the high level of political trust between the two countries.

The minister announced that he will visit Việt Nam later in 2026 to prepare for activities of the two countries' high-level leaders in 2027. He welcomed Việt Nam's opening of a defence attaché office in Cairo, noting that the two countries have regularly participated in each other's defence exhibitions and agreeing to strengthen cooperation in the field.

At the 11th political consultation, the two sides noted that bilateral trade turnover in 2025 increased by 30 per cent year-on-year. They also welcomed the agreement reached on the terms of reference (TOR) for the feasibility study group on a Việt Nam–Egypt free trade agreement (FTA).

They agreed on the need to soon complete the legal framework for enhancing economic and trade ties through the signing of an agreement on the avoidance of double taxation, a memorandum of understanding on electricity and renewable energy, and a letter of intent on agricultural trade development.

Both sides also stressed the importance of maintaining bilateral cooperation mechanisms and organising the sixth meeting of the Việt Nam–Egypt Joint Committee in the African country at an early date.

Tuấn spoke highly of Egypt's role in mediation and efforts to promote peace in addressing regional issues. He reiterated the invitation to the Egyptian President to visit Việt Nam in 2027 and proposed that the two sides continue to advance consideration and negotiations on an FTA and expand cooperation in Halal, education, tourism and cooperation between their localities.

Egyptian Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs Amr Hamza spoke highly of Việt Nam's foreign policy, particularly its respect for international law and the UN Charter and its preference for resolving issues through peaceful means.

The Egyptian side expressed its wish for Việt Nam to share experience in attracting investment to export-oriented manufacturing and encouraged Vietnamese businesses to invest in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, making use of existing policy incentives and infrastructure.

Egypt also affirmed its readiness to work with Việt Nam to strengthen cooperation in defence, tourism and the Halal industry.

During a courtesy call on the Egyptian Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade, Tuấn proposed that Egypt accelerate the joint study on a Việt Nam–Egypt FTA and facilitate access to the Egyptian market of 110 million people for Việt Nam's key agricultural products, including rice, lychee and dragon fruit, as well as seafood, electronics and components.

The Vietnamese deputy minister also called for greater market information sharing and encouraged businesses to step up cooperation in Halal, digital transformation, information technology, oil and gas, and minerals, with the aim of increasing bilateral trade to one billion USD.

Mohamed Farid Saleh suggested promoting an exhibition of Egyptian goods in Việt Nam, establishing a bilateral business council, pursuing mutual recognition of pharmaceutical products and strengthening cooperation in financial services to boost two-way investment.

He said Egypt's central location and its FTAs with European and African countries will create favourable conditions for Vietnamese businesses to invest in export-oriented manufacturing in the free economic zone.

As part of the visit, Tuấn held a working session with the League of Arab States (AL), expressing Việt Nam's wish to deepen relations with the league and its 22 member states through concrete activities under the memorandum of understanding between the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the League's General Secretariat, with economic cooperation given priority.

AL Assistant Secretary-General Khaled Manzlawiy proposed that the two sides jointly organise an Arab-Vietnamese business forum and invited Việt Nam to send an observer to the league. He also called for Việt Nam's support for closer relations between the AL and ASEAN.

The AL also expressed its readiness to receive Vietnamese diplomats as interns and send researchers to Việt Nam. — VNA/VNS