President Luong Cuong's visit contributes to promoting comprehensive cooperation in all fields with Africa

Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son. Photo: VNA

On this occasion, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son gave an interview on the results of President Luong Cuong's State visit to Egypt and Angola.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister, could you please tell us the significance of President Luong Cuong's state visit to Egypt and Angola?

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son: The State visit of President Luong Cuong and his wife to Egypt and Angola is of special significance, being the first State visit of a key Vietnamese leader to Egypt in 7 years and to Angola in 17 years. The visit demonstrates the stature of Vietnam's foreign affairs in the new era, both achieving the goal of bringing Vietnam's relations with important regional partners such as Egypt and Angola to new heights, and affirming the important policy message of our Party and State towards all countries in the African region.

Africa is home to many traditional friends of Vietnam. The 55 member states of the African Union account for more than a quarter of the United Nations members. Egypt and Angola are countries with important roles and positions in the region, with Egypt being the headquarters of the Arab League (AL) and Angola being the current Chair of the African Union (AU).

The visit took place in the context of the world undergoing profound, epochal changes, as General Secretary To Lam has noted. The role and voice of developing countries are increasingly being promoted. Therefore, President Luong Cuong's visit affirms the foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multilateralization and diversification of our Party and State, while also reflecting the trend of strongly enhancing cooperation between Southern countries in shaping a new world order towards multipolarity, fairness and equality.

With that meaning, the President's visit not only affirms the consistent loyalty with traditional friends in Africa, but also contributes to promoting comprehensive cooperation in all fields, especially diversifying markets and partners to serve the implementation of national development goals.

Deputy Prime Minister, could you please tell us about the outstanding results of this visit?

President Luong Cuong's State visit to Egypt and Angola was a great success, achieving all set goals.

In Egypt and Angola, President Luong Cuong had a rich and effective working program, including important talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Angolan President João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, meetings with senior leaders of the two countries, and attending the 50th Anniversary of the establishment of Vietnam-Angola diplomatic relations. The President also made his first visit to the Arab League, delivering important policy speeches to the Arab League as well as at the Special Plenary Session of the Angolan National Assembly, thereby conveying the message and affirming Vietnam's desire to elevate the friendship and cooperation with Egypt, Angola, the Arab League and African countries to new heights, becoming a bridge to promote peace, cooperation and development between the two regions of Asia and Africa.

In addition to the official activities during the visit, the President worked directly with Vietnamese Ambassadors to Africa, met with embassy staff and the Vietnamese community in Egypt and Angola to direct the direction to further promote relations with this increasingly important region. In addition, ministers and leaders of ministries and sectors participating in the delegation also had many meetings and worked with partners and businesses in Egypt and Angola.

During the visit, both countries gave President Luong Cuong and his wife, along with the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation, a thoughtful, respectful, and warm welcome, with deep affection, demonstrating special respect for the relationship with Vietnam. At the meetings, they all expressed their special affection for President Ho Chi Minh, expressed their admiration for the history of the struggle for national independence, and considered Vietnam a source of inspiration and a successful development model for developing countries, including Egypt and Angola.

The visit achieved all the set goals with very substantial and outstanding results and impressions as follows:

Firstly, we have established a new framework in the relationship between Vietnam and regional countries. The Vietnam-Egypt Comprehensive Partnership is Vietnam’s first comprehensive partnership framework in the African region. The visit also determined the orientation of building the Vietnam-Angola “cooperative partnership for mutual development” relationship to become a model for South-South cooperation, practically serving the development needs and interests of each country.

Along with the two Joint Statements between Vietnam and Egypt and Angola, we and our friends have signed many important cooperation documents [1] in the fields of economics - trade - investment, national defense - security, peacekeeping, justice, transfer of sentenced persons, prosecution, television, agriculture, local cooperation... These documents will create a solid framework for the next positive developments in relations with Egypt and Angola in the coming years.

Second, the visit has made it easier for our businesses to access the market, promote investment, and open up cooperation opportunities in new, potential areas. Egypt and Angola both welcomed and committed to facilitating some of Vietnam's strong products to access the market, creating conditions for Vietnamese businesses to invest and do business in each country, promoting cooperation in developing the Halal industry with Egypt and Vietnamese businesses participating in potential oil and gas projects and providing oil and gas technical services in Angola. Egypt and Angola also agreed to increase trade turnover to 1 billion USD, Egypt is ready to promote exchanges to soon start FTA negotiations with Vietnam and establish the Vietnam - Egypt Business Council. This will contribute to opening up opportunities for Vietnam to access the potential market of 1.5 billion people in Africa. Partners also responded very positively to our proposals in cooperation on innovation, green transformation, digital transformation, climate change response, clean energy, oil and gas, mining, Halal industry, etc.

Third, the President conveyed the important policy message of the Party and State of Vietnam to many countries in the African and Arab regions. The President delivered important policy speeches at the headquarters of the Arab League and the Angolan National Assembly. We affirmed Vietnam's role, position and orientation in the new era, expressing our desire to write a new chapter in multifaceted cooperation with the Arab and African countries for peace, cooperation and development. In the context of the world continuing to have many complicated developments, that policy message will strengthen the close relationship, affection and trust between Vietnam and the Arab and African countries, enhance close coordination and mutual support at multilateral mechanisms, especially at the United Nations and the Non-Aligned Movement. At the same time, we also contribute to promoting the relationship between ASEAN and the Arab League and the African Union.

Deputy Prime Minister, could you please tell us about the measures to implement the results achieved during the visit to Egypt and Angola?

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son: First of all, urging the implementation of commitments and agreements is extremely important. The Government has a mechanism to periodically review international commitments and agreements. The spirit of saying is doing, committing is implementing needs to be clearly demonstrated. Accordingly, in the coming time, we need to closely coordinate with Egypt and Angola to promote the implementation and concretize the achieved results, especially building an Action Plan to implement the Vietnam - Egypt comprehensive partnership framework. We and Egypt have agreed to hold an Intergovernmental Committee meeting in 2025 to concretize the results of the visit.

Second, it is necessary to promptly launch and implement newly established mechanisms and further promote the effectiveness of existing cooperation mechanisms. It is necessary to take advantage of the recent momentum of relations with African countries to promote delegation exchanges at all levels, especially high-level ones, through the channels of the Party, State, Government, National Assembly and people-to-people exchanges. Effectively deploy existing cooperation mechanisms between Vietnam and each country such as the Intergovernmental Committee / Joint Committee, Political Consultation between the two Ministries of Foreign Affairs, encourage and facilitate business connections, promote trade and investment, and enhance cultural, educational and people-to-people exchanges, thereby consolidating traditional solidarity and friendship.

Third, strengthen coordination between the government and businesses, people and between the central and local levels in exploiting agreements reached with other countries. With Egypt, it is necessary to maximize cooperation with Egypt in developing the Halal industry, tourism, textiles, education, especially the commitment of the Prime Minister to provide more scholarships for Vietnamese students. With Angola, it is necessary to promptly implement breakthrough measures in the fields of energy, mining, agriculture, banking, while continuing to promote the sending of Vietnamese experts in education - training, health to Angola and cooperation in defense, security, etc.

Vietnamese ministries, departments, sectors, localities and enterprises need to proactively work with Egyptian and Angolan partners to review and remove difficulties and obstacles in economic cooperation, continue to open up more to each other's goods and agricultural products... aiming to reach the goal of reaching a bilateral trade turnover of 1 billion USD with each country and signing a free trade agreement (FTA) or bilateral trade agreement with Egypt in the coming time.

Sincere thanks to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son./.

[1] In Egypt: (i) Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam and the Ministry of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation of Egypt on economic development cooperation; (ii) Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Interior of Vietnam and the Ministry of Local Development of Egypt on cooperation in the field of local development; (iii) Letter of Intent on cooperation between the two Ministries of National Defense; (iv) Memorandum of Understanding between the Vietnam Peacekeeping Department, the Ministry of National Defense of Vietnam and the Liaison Office with International Organizations, the Ministry of National Defense of Egypt; (v) MOU on cooperation between PVEP and the Egyptian National Oil and Gas Corporation EGPC; (vi) The Ministry of Finance of Vietnam granted an Investment Certificate to European Plastic Joint Stock Company.

In Angola: (i) Agreement on the transfer of sentenced persons; (ii) Agreement on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters between the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Republic of Angola; (iii) Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in crime prevention and control between the Supreme People's Procuracy and the Angolan Attorney General's Office; (iv) Letter of Intent on promoting defense cooperation; (v) Action Plan on agricultural cooperation for the period 2025 - 2030 between the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment of Vietnam and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Angola; (vi) Cooperation agreement between VTV and Angolan Television TPA; (vii) Memorandum of Understanding between Sonangol E&P and PVEP on cooperation opportunities in the field of oil and gas exploration and exploitation; (viii) Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation between the Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry and the Angolan Chamber of Industry and Commerce.

Hoai Nam (Vietnam News Agency)

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/thoi-su/chuyen-tham-cua-chu-tich-nuoc-luong-cuong-gop-phan-thuc-day-hop-tac-toan-dien-tren-cac-linh-vuc-voi-chau-phi-20250808224600881.htm