Viet Nam, France seek to deepen Comprehensive Strategic Partnership

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Viet Nam (CPV) Central Committee and President To Lam and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed on new directions to make the Viet Nam-France Comprehensive Strategic Partnership deeper, more substantive and effective at their talks in Paris on September 10 (local time).

President Macron congratulated Viet Nam on the major achievements it has made in socio-economic development in recent years. Hailing Viet Nam’s growing role and stature in the region and on the international stage, the leader highlighted the longstanding ties between the two peoples and affirmed France’s readiness to stand alongside Viet Nam in its new era of development.

President Macron stressed that General Secretary and President Lam’s visit provides an opportunity for the two countries’ high-ranking leaders to exchange views and set new directions to further deepen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

General Secretary and President Lam congratulated France on its outstanding achievements and spoke highly of Paris’s important role and position on the international stage. He affirmed that Viet Nam’s decision to attach importance to France and choose it as the first EU member state with which to establish a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership is a clear testament to the high level of political trust and the determination to elevate bilateral ties to a new level.

The two leaders welcomed the strong and substantive progress in bilateral ties nearly two years after the relationship was elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

Looking ahead, they agreed to maintain regular exchanges at all levels and through all channels, including the Party, Government, National Assembly and people-to-people exchanges, effectively implement existing cooperation mechanisms, and explore deeper sectoral cooperation to meet development needs in the new context.

On defence and security, the two sides agreed to further strengthen and expand cooperation in military medicine training, coordinate efforts to combat crime, and share information on criminal activities, particularly organised and transnational crime. Viet Nam asked France to continue supporting efforts to address war consequences, particularly the search for missing military personnel and the exchange of wartime memorabilia.

In the areas of economy, trade and investment, the two leaders concurred to pursue new, strategic and long-term areas of cooperation within the framework of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, with a focus on developing strategic industries and services with broad spillover effects. In particular, they agreed to promote value-chain partnerships based on the model of “French technology Vietnamese manufacturing regional and global supply,” helping the two countries’ key products, including processed and manufactured goods and agricultural and food products, become part of global supply chains.

The French side welcomed the signing of a number of cooperation documents during the visit, including agreements covering realms of importance amid the current global context.

General Secretary and President Lam called on both sides to continue effectively implementing the EU-Viet Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), and urged France to soon complete the ratification of the EU-Viet Nam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) to provide fresh impetus for investors. He also called on France to encourage the European Commission (EC) to remove the “yellow card” on illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing at an early date, supporting Viet Nam’s efforts to develop fisheries sustainably.

Looking to the future, the leaders agreed to fully tap France’s strengths as a leading scientific power in Europe and officially make science and technology cooperation a new and key pillar of bilateral ties. Breakthrough efforts will focus on strategic areas such as aerospace, critical minerals, quantum technology, clean energy, and research for sustainable development and climate change response.

General Secretary and President Lam suggested the two countries expand scientific research, including space science, and promote technology transfer and the mastery of technologies. He also called on France to support Viet Nam in gradually developing quantum technology.

In this regard, President Macron expressed his hope that the two countries would soon launch major and new projects in strategic science and technology fields.

The two sides will also fully tap the potential of traditional areas of cooperation and shift toward more inclusive and effective partnership models.

They will step up cultural and people-to-people exchanges through the organisation of cultural weeks and days in each country, with the Viet Nam Days in France programme scheduled for October 2026 as an immediate priority. General Secretary and President Lam suggested France simplify visa procedures for Vietnamese citizens to boost tourism and people-to-people exchanges.

The French side affirmed its readiness to support Viet Nam in the development of the Museum of the Communist Party of Viet Nam. President Macron said France would continue to actively support Viet Nam in developing its cultural industries, an area in which France has strengths, as well as provide additional archival materials on President Ho Chi Minh.

France will also continue to promote extensive cooperation with Viet Nam in health care and education and training, he added.

General Secretary and President Lam expressed his sincere appreciation to the French side for returning a Dong Son bronze drum to Viet Nam as part of the two sides’ commitment to combating the illicit trafficking of cultural property, and for donating several artefacts to the Museum of the Communist Party of Viet Nam.

Praising the active work of the French Institute in Viet Nam, he welcomed France’s cooperation in organising a series of Vietnamese cultural events in Paris in October 2026. He also called on France to further support Viet Nam in researching, restoring, preserving and promoting the values of its heritage and historic structures, including Long Bien Bridge in Ha Noi and old French villas, with the involvement of French architects.

On education and training, the two sides agreed to effectively implement existing cooperation agreements, particularly those supporting French-language teaching in Viet Nam.

General Secretary and President Lam called for expanding cooperation in high-quality human resources to sectors aligned with current practical and strategic needs, including semiconductors, new energy and railways.

In health care, the leader highlighted the role of the Pasteur Institutes in Viet Nam and called on the two sides to elevate their cooperation, with a view to making Viet Nam a leading hub for the application of modern medical technologies in Southeast Asia. He also called for continued scholarships for medical students in Viet Nam.

On this occasion, General Secretary and President Lam proposed France continue facilitating the deep integration and strong development of the Vietnamese community there, and establish mechanisms to fully tap the potential of Vietnamese experts, intellectuals and scientists, enabling them to contribute to their host country as well as bilateral ties.

Regarding regional and international issues, President Macron highly valued and shared the Vietnamese leader’s profound views at the recent Shangri-La Dialogue on upholding international law and promoting multilateralism.

The two leaders agreed to strengthen coordination and mutual support at multilateral forums, particularly the United Nations and within the ASEAN-EU framework.

On maritime issues, the two sides reaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security, safety and freedom of navigation and overflight, ensuring unimpeded trade and the right of innocent passage in the East Sea/South China Sea and around the world. They underscored the need to settle disputes by peaceful means on the basis of respect for international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

On this occasion, General Secretary and President Lam and President Macron witnessed the signing and exchange of a number of important cooperation documents between ministries and agencies of the two countries, covering security, health care, aerospace, science and technology, and critical minerals.