On January 13, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met with Alexey Likhachev, Director General of Rosatom, during the latter's working visit to Vietnam.
The Prime Minister affirmed that Vietnam values its Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with Russia, emphasizing the potential in energy cooperation for peaceful purposes and space exploration.
He commended Russia’s support in training Vietnamese scientists and experts in nuclear energy, operating the Da Lat Nuclear Reactor, and developing the Vietnam-Russia Tropical Center. Contributions such as providing radiopharmaceuticals for cancer diagnosis and treatment were also highly appreciated.
As Vietnam enters a new phase of development, the country is striving to become a modern, prosperous nation. By 2030, Vietnam aims to be a high-income, industrialized country, progressing to a developed, high-income nation by 2045.
The government has prioritized restarting its nuclear energy projects to ensure energy security and meet its commitment to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh hopes that Rosatom will continue its collaboration with Vietnam in nuclear power development and further assist the country in enhancing its nuclear science and technology sector for peaceful purposes.
This includes training human resources, transferring advanced technology, and enabling Vietnam to fully utilize its capabilities in nuclear science. He also emphasized the need for improving governance, transferring scientific management practices, and bolstering Vietnam’s ability to develop a robust nuclear technology industry.
Director General Alexey Likhachev assured Vietnam of Rosatom’s willingness to strengthen cooperation and actualize agreements made between the two nations.
As a leading global corporation in nuclear energy with extensive experience in Vietnam, Rosatom is committed to supporting Vietnam in constructing nuclear power plants, establishing modern nuclear research centers, and localizing nuclear products for the Vietnamese market.
The corporation also envisions long-term collaboration, leveraging nuclear energy for socio-economic development, as outlined by the Prime Minister.
Expanding bilateral cooperation
Later that day, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha met with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Nikolayevich Chernyshenko to discuss progress since the 25th session of the Vietnam-Russia Intergovernmental Committee on Economic, Trade, and Scientific-Technical Cooperation in September 2024.
In the first 11 months of 2024, bilateral trade between Vietnam and Russia reached $4.1 billion, marking a 27.4% increase compared to the same period in 2023.
Both sides have pursued specific cooperation initiatives and explored potential projects in industries such as machinery, metallurgy, chemicals, and mineral processing. Areas like renewable energy equipment, transportation infrastructure, and modernizing Vietnam's energy facilities were also highlighted.
Energy collaboration, traditionally focused on oil and gas, is expanding to include gas-fired power plants, liquefied natural gas supply, and renewable energy infrastructure development.
In addition to economic ties, Vietnam and Russia have strengthened cooperation in education, culture, tourism, and language training. Initiatives include promoting the teaching of Vietnamese and Russian, maintaining scholarships for Vietnamese students in Russia, and encouraging Russian students to study in Vietnam.
Both sides acknowledged that economic and trade cooperation has yet to reach its full potential, considering the strong diplomatic relations and shared aspirations of their leaders.
Tran Thuong