Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and his Slovak counterpart Robert Fico held talks in Hanoi on April 13, during which the former affirmed that Vietnam and Slovakia are traditional friends with a long-standing relationship spanning more than 76 years.
The Vietnamese leader underscored that Vietnam always remembers and appreciates the valuable support and assistance extended by the Slovak Government and people during its past struggle for national independence and reunification, as well as in the national renewal and socio-economic development at present.
He reaffirmed that Vietnam consistently prioritises strengthening ties with traditional friends, including Slovakia, which it considers a leading priority partner in Central and Eastern Europe. He described PM Fico’s visit as historic, heralding a new chapter in bilateral relations.
For his part, the Slovak PM expressed his pleasure at returning to Vietnam after a decade, affirming that Vietnam is Slovakia’s largest partner in Southeast Asia and among its top three in Asia. He noted that this is the largest official delegation he has led abroad, reflecting his country’s high regard for bilateral ties and its desire to elevate cooperation in a substantive manner.
He thanked Vietnam for its warm reception and congratulated the country on successfully organising the 14th National Party Congress and the elections of deputies to the 16th National Assembly and People’s Councils at all levels for the 2026–2031 tenure. He also congratulated Hung on his election as PM of Vietnam.
The visiting leader praised Vietnam’s significant achievements in renewal, political stability and rising international stature, describing them as a source of encouragement for Slovakia. He also commended Vietnam’s foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, self-strengthening, peace, friendship, cooperation, and diversification and multilateralisation of external relations, noting that these offer valuable lessons for Slovakia to study and draw upon.
PM Fico affirmed Slovakia attaches great importance to its traditional friendship and comprehensive cooperation with Vietnam, consistently regarding the latter as its most important partner in Southeast Asia, and that it hopes to promote relations in a substantive and effective manner to enhance the quality of cooperation.
In a sincere, open and trustful atmosphere, the two PMs held comprehensive discussions on each country’s situation, bilateral cooperation and regional and international issues of mutual concern. They expressed satisfaction at the strong development of cooperation across all fields in recent years, particularly in politics and diplomacy, with enhanced political trust and frequent mutual visits and engagements at all levels, especially high-level ones.
Both sides agreed to further promote relations through Party, State, parlaimentary and people-to-people channels while effectively implementing the outcomes of high-level visits. They also consented to improve the efficiency of existing cooperation mechanisms, including the resumption of the Vietnam – Slovakia Intergovernmental Committee on economic cooperation and the maintenance of regular deputy foreign minister-level political consultations.
The two leaders agreed that economic, trade and investment partnerships remain a key pillar. While bilateral trade reached some 1.78 billion USD in 2025, they noted it has yet to match potential, and pledged efforts to double the figure. They agreed to leverage the countries' roles as gateways for each other to access the European Union (EU) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and to facilitate market access for each other's businesses, particularly in IT, telecommunications, cybersecurity and the automotive industry, including flagship projects such as FPT Software’s investment in Slovakia.
The Vietnamese PM took the occasion to thank and appreciate Slovakia’s early ratification of the EU – Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), and called on the country to continue advocating the remaining EU member states' ratification of the deal soon, thereby creating a transparent and stable business environment for enterprises of both sides. He also called on Slovakia to help persuade the European Commission to lift the “yellow card” warning on Vietnam’s seafood exports, and to facilitate access for Vietnam’s key export products—such as agro-forestry-fishery products, wooden items, apparel, and footwear—to the EU market.
The two leaders also agreed to step up cooperation in defence – security, transnational crime prevention, and cybersecurity; energy, particularly nuclear energy for peaceful use and renewable energy; science – technology, education – training, culture, sports, tourism, agriculture, health care, and climate change response towards achieving net-zero emissions.
On labour, the two sides agreed to consider negotiations on a labour agreement to protect workers’ rights and promote the mobility of skilled labour, as well as to facilitate and expedite talks on a visa exemption agreement for holders of official passports.
The PMs also agreed to promote tourism cooperation, particularly increasing the number of Slovak visitors to Vietnam beyond the current figure of 18,000. The Slovak PM proposed that the two sides study the early establishment of a direct air route linking Bratislava with Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City.
For locality-to-locality cooperation and people-to-people exchanges, PM Hung expressed sincere appreciation to the Government and people of Slovakia for recognising the Vietnamese-origin community as the 14th ethnic minority group in the country, affirming that this is an important prerequisite for the community to live in stability, integrate well, and contribute actively to the host country’s development.
The PMs also welcomed efforts to promote cooperation between localities of the two countries.
They exchanged views on regional and international issues of common concern, reaffirming their commitment to continuing close coordination and mutual support at international forums and organisations, particularly the UN, the ASEAN – EU cooperation mechanism, and the Asia – Europe Meeting (ASEM).
Regarding the East Sea issue, the two sides reiterated the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security, safety, and freedom of navigation and overflight; and voiced support for resolving disputes by peaceful measures in accordance with international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). They also noted the importance of fully and effectively implementing the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), and early finalising an efficient and substantive Code of Conduct (COC) in the waters.
Following their talks, the Vietnamese and Slovak leaders agreed to adopt a joint statement on upgrading Vietnam – Slovakia relations to a Strategic Partnership, marking a historic milestone in bilateral ties that opens up a new chapter in cooperation between the two countries in line with the aspirations and interests of their peoples.
To implement this political determination, PM Hung and his Slovak counterpart tasked the two ministries of foreign affairs with developing a concrete action plan to carry out the joint statement.
PM Fico took the occasion to respectfully invite his Vietnamese counterpart to pay an official visit to Slovakia in the near future. PM Hung expressed his appreciation and suggested both sides arrange the visit at a mutually convenient time./.
