The Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Maria Tripodi, concluded her mission to Vietnam for the annual bilateral political consultations.
“Italy and Vietnam are bound by deep ties of friendship and cooperation, which are reflected in the excellent state of our relations,” said Tripodi during her meeting in Hanoi with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Le Thi Thu Hang. During the consultations, the two parties discussed in depth political relations, defence and security cooperation, dossiers on energy, development, research, and the fight against climate change. On the fight against organised crime, Tripodi welcomed Vietnam’s decision to soon host the signing ceremony of the UN Convention on Cybercrime in Hanoi. On the sidelines, negotiations were also concluded for the forthcoming signing of the Action Plan for the implementation of the Strategic Partnership for the three-year period 2025-2027.
The Undersecretary then met the Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade, Nguyen Hoang Long, with whom she co-chaired the 9th Italian-Vietnamese Joint Economic Commission. “Italy and Vietnam are economies linked by an obvious strategic complementarity. For Italy, Hanoi is the first trade partner in ASEAN, with more than one billion of our investments in the country and a trade interchange of 6 billion Euros”, Tripodi recalled, rejoicing for the results achieved and the prospects for growth, with particular regard to the creation of new technological centres and a focus on the energy, agriculture and environment sectors.
During the visit, Tripodi also met with representatives of the Italian community and the Country System. “There are many successful examples of our companies in Vietnam, which demonstrate not only the deep connection with this part of the world, but also the great development potential for the future, also through the support of our diplomacy”.