President Ho Chi Minh's bust in front of the National Library of Sri Lanka in Colombo, a symbol of Sri Lankan people's' respect to President Ho. -- Photo courtesy of the embassy

Today, July 21, Sri Lanka and Vietnam commemorate the 50th anniversary of their establishment of formal diplomatic relations. Although only officially founded in 1970, Sri Lanka and Vietnam’s deep-rooted relationship spans several centuries.

Notably, during these years, the founder of modern Vietnam, the late President Ho Chi Minh, paid numerous visits to Sri Lanka, in 1911, 1928 and 1946, on his way to Europe. President Ho was warmly welcomed by a nation that became one of the first to support Vietnam in its struggle against French and US occupation, acting as a staunch ally.

Together, Sri Lanka and Vietnam enjoy amicable ties in bilateral, regional and multilateral diplomacy equally. Co-operation between the two countries extends to wider areas of politics, trade, investment and economics, defence, culture, education, tourism, agriculture etc. In addition, the Sri Lanka – Vietnam Parliamentary Friendship Group maintains tight-knit cordial relations between the Parliament of Sri Lanka and the National Assembly of Vietnam. This robust relationship is also marked by high-level visits undertaken by leaders of both countries.

Furthermore, Sri Lanka and Vietnam share close trade relations, with the trade balance in favour of Vietnam over the years. The total trade volume of 2019 was US$381 million where Sri Lanka imported goods/services worth $302 million from Vietnam and exported goods/services worth $79 million to Vietnam.

With regard to investment, leading Sri Lankan apparel industry companies, such as Hidramani Group and MAS Holdings, have established factories in Hanoi, HCM City and Da Nang. These factories have employed more than 10,000 Vietnamese citizens. Sri Lankan cosmetics and perfumes producer, Nature’s Secret, also has a footprint in Vietnam.

President of Sri Lanka Gotabaya Rajapaksa, while conveying his warmest greetings and felicitations on this important milestone to his Vietnamese counterpart, Nguyen Phu Trong, Party General Secretary and President of Vietnam, recalled the rich history of relations between the two countries, rooted in mutual trust, friendship and respect. President Rajapaksa also congratulated Vietnam on its leadership of ASEAN as the Chair for 2020, non-permanent membership at the UN Security Council for the term 2020-21 and effective control of the nation’s COVID-19 outbreak.

Extending his compliments to Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka Mahinda Rajapaksa recognised the shared values, deep sincerity and continuous reciprocity that have existed between the two countries through generations of leaders and peoples. Prime Minister Rajapaksa congratulated Vietnam on its tremendous achievements under the guidance of the Communist Party during the last 90 years.   

Dinesh Gunawardena, Minister of Foreign Relations of Sri Lanka, also commended his Vietnam counterpart, Pham Binh Minh, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, on this important milestone. Minister Gunawardena recalled the remarkable achievements of both countries during the last 50 years, giving prominence to Vietnam’s productive contributions in regional and multilateral fora. He stated that although the COVID-19 pandemic has prevented the two countries from celebrating this momentous landmark, he is confident that plans will be made to hold appropriate celebratory events in the year ahead.

Sri Lankan leaders also extended invitations to their Vietnamese counterparts to visit Sri Lanka during the celebratory year.  VNS