Party leader To Lam (R) and Belgian King Philippe (Photo: VNA)
Party General Secretary To Lam on April 1 received Belgian King Philippe, who is on a five-day state visit to Viet Nam.
Welcoming King Philippe, Queen Mathilde, and the Belgian high-level delegation to Viet Nam, the Party chief highlighted the historic significance of the visit, the first at the head-of-state level between the two countries since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1973.
He expressed his belief that this visit, accompanied by senior officials, business leaders, representatives of universities and research institutes, would create new momentum to deepen and enhance the friendship and multifaceted cooperation between Viet Nam and Belgium in a practical and effective way, meeting the benefits of their people and contributing responsibly to peace, stability, and sustainable development in the region and the world.
He praised the significant contributions of King Philippe and Queen Mathilde to Belgium's socio-political life, including maintaining the unity in diversity. He also expressed gratitude for the strong support of the Belgian people for Viet Nam during its struggle for national independence and for the personal contributions of the Belgian royal couple to Viet Nam and bilateral relations.
The Party General Secretary said he is pleased with the positive development of the Viet Nam-Belgium relationship, noting that increasing political trust between the two countries has laid a foundation for cooperation across all sectors.
To better match their potential and good political relations, Lam stressed that the two countries need to continue deepening cooperation in trade-investment, sustainable agriculture, high-quality human resource training, culture, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges. He also called for stronger collaboration in science-technology and innovation, and particularly Belgium’s sharing of business development models to help Viet Nam achieve its development goals for 2030 and 2045.
Noting the similarities in geographic location, with Belgium at the center of Europe and Viet Nam at the heart of Southeast Asia, King Philippe highlighted that the two countries should strengthen cooperation to serve as gateways for each other in their respective regions. He agreed with his host that the Viet Nam-Belgium relationship has been thriving over the past 50 years, and the two countries should continue close collaboration to address global challenges such as climate change and environmental issues.
An overview of the meeting. Photo: VNA
Lam spoke highly of the contributions of Vietnamese experts trained in Belgium over the years, saying they have played a vital role in Viet Nam’s state management and economic development. He emphasised the need to facilitate tourism and trade exchanges between the two nations and urged Belgium to promptly ratify the EU-Viet Nam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) to help boost investment flows from the EU and Belgium to Viet Nam and vice versa.
The Party leader briefed the Belgian King on Viet Nam's “Doi Moi” (Renewal) efforts and achievements, as well as the country's socio-economic development in the past nearly 40 years, highlighting the support from international friends. He noted that Viet Nam has now joined the group of the world’s 35 largest economies and the top 20 globally in trade volume.
King Philippe expressed his impression at Viet Nam's remarkable achievements in industrialisation and modernisation, which he has witnessed firsthand during his four visits to Viet Nam, the first of which was in 1994. He proudly noted that Belgium has contributed to Viet Nam's socio-economic development.
The King agreed with General Secretary Lam’s proposal to increase high-level exchanges and engagements, enhance the effectiveness of bilateral cooperation mechanisms, and expand collaboration in potential areas such as education-training, defence, security, renewable energy, particularly wind turbine technology, green hydrogen, health care, and the environment. He laid special stress on the mitigation of Agent Orange/dioxin consequences, an area where Belgium has strong expertise.
Lam emphasised that Viet Nam is recognised as a responsible member of the international community, particularly in maintaining peace, stability, and cooperation in the region, including the East Sea.
The two sides reached consensus that Viet Nam and Belgium should work closely at international and regional forums to promote multilateralism, the rule of law, and international responsibility in addressing regional and global challenges.
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Vietnamese State President Luong Cuong (R) meets with Belgian King Philippe. (Photo: VNA)
* On the same day, President Cuong had meeting with Belgian King Philippe.
At the meeting, The two leaders emphasised the importance of implementing the Strategic Partnership framework on agriculture through developing circular agricultural economic models, smart agriculture, enhancing technology transfer between research and training agencies in agriculture, forestry, and fisheries, contributing to Viet Nam's efforts in responding to climate change, especially in the Mekong Delta. They agreed to study and develop an agricultural cooperation programme between Viet Nam and regions of Belgium.
The two sides agreed to promote cooperation in important areas such as agriculture, education - training, culture - tourism, defence - security, science and technology, local cooperation; and at the same time, expand to other potential areas such as green technology, artificial intelligence, innovation, high technology, promote the startup ecosystem, train high-quality human resources, especially in the semiconductor industry.
Discussing regional and international issues of mutual concern, the two sides affirmed the importance of promoting multilateralism and respect for international law; emphasising the settlement of disputes in the East Sea by peaceful measures, on the basis of the fundamental principles of the United Nations Charter and international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), contributing to maintaining peace, stability, security, safety, freedom of navigation and aviation in the regions and the world, for global cooperation and prosperity.
After the meeting, the two leaders witnessed the handover of cooperation documents including: The Cooperation Programme for the period of 2025 - 2027 between the Vietnamese Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Brussels Capital Region; Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation between the Institute of Hydrometeorology and Climate Change under the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Environment and the Flemish Institute for Technological Research; Memorandum of Understanding between the Viet Nam Trade Promotion Agency, and the Flanders Investment and Trade and the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency and the Brussels Business Support Agency; an In-principle Agreement between the Viet Nam Association of Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin and the Aquitara Impact Fund 1 of the Kingdom of Belgium.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (R) welcomes visiting Belgian King Philippe in Hanoi on April 1 (Photo: VNA)
* Viet Nam and Belgium should foster deeper cooperation in areas of one's strength and the other's need such as high technology, circular economy, and strategic infrastructure, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh stated at a meeting with visiting Belgian King Philippe in Hanoi on April 1.
He urged Belgium to expedite the ratification of the EU-Viet Nam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) and to push the European Commission to lift its yellow card warning on Viet Nam’s seafood exports.
King Philippe recognised Viet Nam’s strategic significance in the region and highlighted Belgium’s interest in enhancing cooperation in education, health care, seaport development, renewable energy, science-technology, and innovation. He also underscored Belgium’s support for businesses of both sides in bolstering investment and trade activities in respective countries.
The two sides concurred to increase delegation exchanges and engagements at all levels across Party, Government, and parliamentary channels. They committed to strengthening inter-ministerial cooperation, maximising the effectiveness of existing bilateral mechanisms, and facilitating greater people-to-people exchanges. They also acknowledged the crucial role of the Vietnamese community in Belgium and the Belgian community in Viet Nam in fostering deeper bilateral ties.
Source: VNA
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