Hanoi (VNA) - President of the Senate of the Parliament of the Czech Republic Milos Vystrcil on November 20 met with Czech and Vietnamese enterprises in Hanoi as part of his official visit to Vietnam.
The event was organised by the Czech Embassy in Hanoi, in coordination with the Czech Chamber of Commerce and CzechTrade. It took place at a time when the two countries are celebrating the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations.
Speaking at the meeting, Vystrcil emphasised the closeness of the bilateral ties despite geographical distance, describing the Czech Republic as the “heart of Europe” and noting that although Vietnam and the Czech Republic are 8,800km apart, the two nations are truly very close.
He highlighted three key foundations underpinning this special relationship: the 75-year history of diplomatic ties since the former Czechoslovakia became the first European country to establish relations with Vietnam; the presence of more than 300,000 Vietnamese who speak or understand Czech; and a community of around 50,000 people of Vietnamese origin who have become an officially recognised ethnic minority in the Czech Republic. These factors create favourable conditions for expanding economic and business cooperation.
The Senate President reaffirmed that both governments strongly support deeper partnership. However, he stressed that the main driving force must come from businesses themselves, expressing his hope that enterprises from both sides will seize opportunities and generate mutual benefits.
Nguyen Anh Tuan, Deputy Director of the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Finance, reported that bilateral trade reached 1.6 billion USD in the first nine months of 2025.
As of October 2025, the Czech Republic had 46 valid investment projects in Vietnam with total registered capital of about 91.5 million USD, ranking 52nd among 153 countries and territories investing in the country. Tuan cited the joint venture between Czech automaker Škoda Auto and Vietnam’s Thanh Cong Group to develop car manufacturing in Quang Ninh province as a symbol of the growing partnership.
Despite these positive results, Tuan noted that cooperation has yet to match its full potential. He identified priority areas for collaboration, including manufacturing and processing technologies, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, high-tech industries, green and clean energy, finance, information technology, telecommunications, and tourism.
Tuan affirmed that Vietnam is pushing ahead with breakthroughs in institutions, infrastructure, and human resources to achieve its goal of becoming a high-income developed nation by 2045. The Southeast Asian country is committed to building a fair, transparent, open, competitive and predictable investment environment, he stressed.
The meeting also featured presentations by Czech companies accompanying the Senate President and a B2B networking session connecting enterprises from both sides./.
