Vietnam-France Ties Poised for Deeper, More Substantive Cooperation

Vietnam's Party General Secretary and President To Lam's official visit to France has reaffirmed the particular importance the country attaches to its comprehensive strategic partnership with France. The visit provided an opportunity to connect France’s strengths in science and technology, innovation, and strategic technology sectors with Vietnam’s emerging development needs. Nguyen Duy Ngoc, a Politburo Member and Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee's Organisation Commission, highlighted education and training, science and technology, and high-quality human resources as key areas of cooperation in Vietnam-France relations during his visit to the Institut Polytechnique de Paris. Dr Frederic Roustan emphasized the importance of scientific and intellectual cooperation, noting that despite fluctuations in bilateral diplomatic, political, and economic relations over the decades, connections between French and Vietnamese scientists and intellectuals have been maintained, contributing to exchanges between the two countries. Vietnam and France reaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace, security, and stability in the East Sea and of full respect for the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The Vietnamese leader expected the French National Assembly to soon complete the ratification of the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) and asked France to continue leveraging its role in the European Union to support stronger Vietnam-EU ties and tackle illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and the list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes. Economically, ties have continued to grow across trade, investment, and development cooperation. Bilateral trade surpassed $5 billion in the first eight months of 2026, with Vietnam exporting $3.1 billion worth of goods to France and importing $1.9 billion worth of products from the European country. Vietnam maintains an independent foreign policy, diversifying its external relations with the international community. Participation in BRICS provides a platform to engage members and partners, debate global and regional governance, especially economic and development issues tied to emerging and developing economies, and identify directions and solutions. This supports Vietnam’s shift from "engaging in rule-making to contributing to shaping rules," raising its voice in international frameworks, rules, and standards, and cementing its global standing. Vietnam attaches importance to and wishes to further deepen comprehensive cooperation with Poland, both bilaterally and multilaterally, determined to effectively implement high-level commitments and agreements to make bilateral ties more substantive and effective and bring them to a new level. The Vietnamese leader acknowledged and highly appreciated the pioneering and active role played by Vietnamese associations, particularly the Vietnamese Association in France, in strengthening community solidarity and cohesion, promoting Vietnamese culture, maintaining Vietnamese-language teaching and learning among younger generations, and making practical contributions to national development.