Vietnamese, Chinese leaders discuss major directions to further strengthen trust, cooperation

Vietnam's Party General Secretary and President To Lam and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping conducted official talks at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Monday, following the grand welcome ceremony.

China's top leader Xi Jinping welcomed the Vietnamese delegation on the state visit and congratulated To Lam on his election as the Party leader and President of Vietnam.

Party General Secretary and President Xi Jinping once again expressed his deep condolences on the passing of Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. He highly valued the significant and important contributions of the late leader to Vietnam's revolutionary cause, Vietnam-China relations, and the development of socialism globally.

Xi Jinping expressed confidence that the Party and State of Vietnam would continue to inherit the legacy of the late General Secretary Trong, achieving even greater successes in the reform process and the construction of socialism.

He underscored that the first state visit to China by General Secretary and President Lam, as well as his first abroad trip as head of Vietnam's Party and State held tremendous significance.

It reflected the high regard and top priority that both Parties and countries place on Vietnam-China relations, marking a pivotal moment to elevate the bilateral relationship to new heights and deeper, more substantive dimensions across all areas, he noted.

Xi Jinping affirmed that Vietnam remained a top priority in China's foreign policy and reiterated China’s support for the country's steadfast leadership under the Party in promoting the Socialist cause.

On behalf of the Party, State and people of Vietnam, Vietnamese leader To Lam expressed his sincere and heartfelt thanks to the Communist Party of China (CPC) for sending profound condolences and displaying numerous special gestures following the passing of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. These acts strongly underscored the high-level relationship between the two countries, as well as the special bond between Xi Jinping and Nguyen Phu Trong.

The Vietnamese leader expressed deep gratitude to his Chinese counterpart and Chinese people for their warm reception, which vividly reflected the comradeship and fraternity between the two Parties and nations.

To Lam sincerely thanked Xi Jinping for the congratulations and expressed a desire to work closely with him and China's leadership to continue fostering the friendship and jointly promote the Comprehensive Strategic Cooperative Partnership and the Vietnam-China community of shared future with strategic significance.

Highlighting the importance of the visit, the Vietnamese leader affirmed that Vietnam always prioritized its friendly neighbor and partnership with China.

In a cordial and friendly atmosphere, the two leaders exchanged views on the situation in their respective Parties and countries, as well as the relations between the two.

The Vietnamese leader congratulated the significant and important achievements made by the Chinese Party, State, and People under the "core" leadership of Xi Jinping over the past decade of the "new era," especially since the 20th National Party Congress, as well as expressed confidence in the success of China’s Socialist cause.

He briefed Xi Jinping on Vietnam's recent situation, particularly in economic and social development, Party building, political system reforms, anti-corruption efforts, national defence, security and foreign policies.

He emphasized that Vietnam would harness its spirit of "self-reliance, confidence, self-sufficiency, national pride" to successfully implement the resolutions of the 13th National Party Congress and prepare for the successful organisation of the Party's 14th Congress in 2026.

General Secretary, President Xi Jinping congratulated Vietnam on its achievements and expressed confidence that, under the leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), more successes would be coming in the Doi moi (reform) process and the pursuance of socialism.

He reiterated China's support for Vietnam's goal of becoming a high-income developed country by 2045, as outlined in the 13th National Party Congress.

Recalling the meaningful events during his first stop in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, the Vietnamese leader underscored the significance of the visit, which coincided with the 100th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh’s arrival in Guangzhou, after 13 years of looking for a way to save the country.

This visit demonstrated Vietnam's appreciation for China’s valuable support during key historical periods.

Xi Jinping stressed that President Ho Chi Minh’s illustrious years forged a “deep bond of comradeship and brotherhood” between Vietnam and China.

The two General Secretaries and Presidents expressed satisfaction with the positive momentum in bilateral relations, especially following the historic visits of the top leaders of both Parties in 2022 and 2023.

These visits resulted in many positive outcomes, following the 'six enhancements' approach, including higher political trust, deeper substantive cooperation in national defence and security, more solid social foundations, closer coordination on multilateral platforms and more effective management and resolution of differences.

Amid complex and unpredictable global and regional developments, To Lam reaffirmed Vietnam's consistent foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, friendship, cooperation, and development, while pursuing diversification and multilateralism in foreign relations and maintaining the 'Four Nos' defence policy.

Xi Jinping strongly affirmed that China remained committed to friendly relations with Vietnam, always regarding Vietnam as a top priority and strategic choice in its diplomatic strategy with neighbouring countries.

The two leaders engaged in extensive discussions on major directions to further strengthen trust, solidify friendship, enhance the effectiveness of practical cooperation in various areas, maintain peace and stability at sea and advance the Vietnam-China relationship healthily, stably and sustainably, in line with the 'Sixteen-Word Guideline' and the 'Four Goods' spirit.

The two leaders reached a high level of consensus on enhancing political trust, maintaining regular exchanges between the high-level leaders of the two Parties and nations and emphasising the strategic guiding role of the Party channel in the overall bilateral relationship.

They also agreed to deepen theoretical cooperation through mechanisms such as the theoretical seminars between the two Parties, sharing latest theoretical and practical achievements of each Party and country, contributing meaningfully to their respective causes.

The two leaders highlighted the importance of fostering and expanding substantive cooperation in key areas.

They agreed to continue strengthening cooperation in security and defence, promoting economic and trade cooperation, and enhancing connectivity between the 'Two Corridors, One Belt' initiative and the 'Belt and Road Initiative'.

Furthermore, they agreed to advance infrastructure connectivity, particularly in rail and road, strengthen supply chain cooperation and foster economic cooperation between border provinces, while promoting exchanges in state-owned enterprise reforms.

General Secretary and President To Lam proposed that both sides enhance cooperation in constructing large, symbolic projects that are commensurate with the level of political trust and reflect China's advanced technological development.

He called on China to provide concessional loans, transfer technology, support human resource training and invest in key transportation infrastructure projects in Vietnam.

Xi Jinping affirmed that China was ready to increase imports of Vietnamese agricultural products and expand trade promotion offices in China, facilitating access for high-quality Vietnamese goods into the Chinese market.

As the two nations approach the 75th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations in 2025, the two General Secretaries and Presidents agreed on the necessity of further promoting people-to-people exchanges and strengthening the bonds of friendship between the two peoples, particularly among the younger generations. They also agreed to designate 2025 as the 'Year of Vietnam-China Cultural Exchange'.

The two leaders engaged in deep discussions on various international and regional issues of shared concern, highlighting mutual coordination and support in multilateral forums and international mechanisms, based on the legitimate interests of both nations and positive contributions to the global community.

Regarding maritime issues, the two sides engaged in sincere and candid discussions, agreeing to implement well the high-level common understandings and striving to manage and resolve differences more effectively.

General Secretary and President To Lam proposed that both sides must respect each other's legitimate interests, resolve differences through peaceful means, and adhere to the United Nations Charter, international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS 1982) and fully and seriously implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (known internationally as the South China Sea) (DOC) while promoting a substantive, effective Code of Conduct (COC) in line with international law and UNCLOS 1982.

On behalf of the Party and State of Vietnam, General Secretary and President To Lam extended an invitation to his counterpart to visit Vietnam again soon and Xi Jinping graciously accepted the invitation with thanks.

After the talks, To Lam and Xi Jinping witnessed the signing of cooperation agreements between the Parties, ministries and localities of both countries in areas such as Party schools, agricultural trade, broadcasting and journalism, healthcare, infrastructure, trade and industry and banking.

The Chinese leader cordially invited General Secretary and President To Lam to join him for a tea party. This is a special form of engagement that has been established and maintained during many recent high-level visits between the top leaders of the two Parties and countries, demonstrating the importance and the 'comrades and brothers' spirit between the leaders of both nations.

In a joyful, warm and friendly atmosphere, the two General Secretaries and Presidents reminizced about the tradition of friendship between the two Parties and countries, had a sincere exchange about tea culture in each country's customs, reviewed the common understandings reached during their talks and emphasized the importance of further developing bilateral relations to new heights.