Vietnam and EU Strengthen Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in Brussels
President To Lam and EU leaders met in Brussels to accelerate cooperation on energy transition, trade, and maritime security under a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
General Secretary and President of Vietnam To Lam visited Brussels on October 22 to deepen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between Vietnam and the European Union. During a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, To Lam identified the EU as a priority partner and called for accelerated cooperation in scientific research, strategic infrastructure, and energy transition, specifically referencing the Just Energy Transition Partnership and the Global Gateway initiative.
President von der Leyen described Vietnam as a reliable, like-minded partner in the Indo-Pacific and expressed the EU's interest in diversifying supply chains for critical raw materials. The two leaders agreed to use a special task force to expand trade under the EU–Vietnam Free Trade Agreement and discussed removing the EU's yellow card warning on Vietnamese seafood exports.
Parallel to the presidential meeting, Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung met with European Commission Vice-President Kaja Kallas. The officials agreed to maintain regular high-level consultations to make the partnership more substantive. Both parties emphasized their shared commitment to the rules-based international order and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Minister Trung also expressed support for the EU's Indo-Pacific Strategy and offered to facilitate deeper relations between ASEAN and the EU to promote regional stability.
