New York (VNA) - General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and President To Lam held meetings with Timor-Leste President José Ramos-Horta, Swiss President Guy Parmelin, and Finnish President Alexander Stubb in New York on September 22 afternoon (local time).
The meetings formed part of his working trip to attend the high-level general debate of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and conduct bilateral activities in the US.
Meeting with Vietnam’s top leader, Timor-Leste President José Ramos-Horta spoke highly of the positive development of Vietnam–Timor-Leste relations, noting that political trust between the two countries has continued to be strengthened and cooperation across various fields has continued to expand. He expressed his admiration for Vietnam’s rapid and sustainable development, affirming that Vietnam’s development journey has been a strong source of inspiration for Timor-Leste.
President Ramos-Horta also thanked Vietnam for its continued support and partnership with Timor-Leste in its development and regional and international integration efforts, and agreed to further promote increasingly substantive and effective bilateral cooperation. As an immediate step, the two sides will hold the first meeting of the Joint Commission for for Bilateral Cooperation to discuss in detail plans and areas of cooperation, including areas where Vietnam could support Timor-Leste in strengthening economic self-reliance, developing the private sector, improving institutions, and developing infrastructure.
General Secretary and President To Lam affirmed that Vietnam always attaches importance to and wishes to further strengthen its friendship and multifaceted cooperation with Timor-Leste. He spoke highly of the outcomes of the official visit to Vietnam and participation in the third ASEAN Future Forum by the Timor-Leste Prime Minister last June.
The top leader of Vietnam suggested that the two sides continue to closely coordinate and effectively implement the high-level agreements and common perceptions reached, increase exchanges of delegations and contacts at all levels, and create new momentum for bilateral cooperation. He also called for promoting substantive cooperation in such areas as economy, trade, investment, agriculture, telecommunications, education and training, and people-to-people exchanges.
“Vietnam stands ready to continue sharing its experience and supporting Timor-Leste in promoting its role as a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), its role as ASEAN Chair in 2029, and its increasingly effective regional integration,” he stressed.
The two sides agreed to strengthen consultations, coordination, and mutual support within ASEAN, the United Nations, and regional and international forums, while contributing to strengthening ASEAN solidarity and centrality, promoting multilateralism, upholding international law, and maintaining peace, stability, cooperation, and development in the region.
As the two countries will celebrate the 25th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2027, the two leaders agreed to coordinate closely in organising commemorative activities and, at the same time, promote substantive cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, investment, agriculture, telecommunications, education and training, and people-to-people exchanges.
At their meeting, Vietnam’s top leader and Swiss President Guy Parmelin expressed their pleasure at the positive progress in bilateral relations in recent years.
The Swiss President expressed his impression of Vietnam’s development goals and orientations for the coming period. He emphasised that his upcoming visit to Vietnam would be very important, contributing to further strengthening bilateral relations on the occasion of the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations. He expressed Switzerland’s wish to become an important economic and trade partner of Vietnam, commensurate with the potential of both countries.
The President proposed that the two sides soon launch joint research cooperation projects in areas such as agriculture, biotechnology, green energy, and the digital economy.
For his part, General Secretary and President To Lam said that he is directing relevant Vietnamese agencies to make thorough preparations for the Swiss President’s upcoming visit.
He proposed that Switzerland encourage and facilitate greater investment by Swiss corporations in Vietnam in areas where Switzerland has strengths, such as finance and banking, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and innovation.
He also urged Switzerland to share its experience and support Vietnam in financial technology, the development of an international financial centre, digital finance, blockchain, and the development of high-quality human resources in technology.
During the meeting, the two leaders emphasised the need to effectively implement the Comprehensive Partnership framework through specific cooperation projects, tap the potential for economic cooperation, and promote trade and investment, with the aim of increasing bilateral trade turnover to more than 2 billion USD by 2030.
They agreed to strengthen consultations, coordination, and mutual support at multilateral forums.
At his meeting with Vietnam’s top leader, Finnish President Alexander Stubb spoke highly of Vietnam’s socio-economic development achievements and affirmed that Finland attaches importance to its relations with Vietnam, noting the positive results achieved since the two countries established their Strategic Partnership.
He said that the two sides are actively taking concrete steps to implement the outcomes of Party General Secretary To Lam’s visit to Finland in October 2025.
In the coming period, the President expressed his wish that the two sides continue to promote cooperation in areas of mutual interest, particularly economy, trade, high technology, digital transformation, 5G/6G, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, Earth observation satellites, clean energy, science and technology, education, attraction of high-quality human resources, people-to-people exchanges, and sustainable development.
General Secretary and President To Lam said that over more than 50 years of partnership, the traditional friendship and multifaceted cooperation between Vietnam and Finland have been diligently cultivated, maintained, and developed by generations of leaders and people of the two countries.
He affirmed that Vietnam attaches importance to and wishes to work with Finland to continue deepening the Strategic Partnership in a substantive and effective manner.
He suggested that the two sides maintain exchanges and contacts at all levels, make effective use of existing cooperation mechanisms, and promote cooperation in various fields, particularly trade, science and technology, innovation, energy, digital transformation, satellite technology, cybersecurity, wastewater treatment, and green infrastructure.
He also called for stronger educational cooperation under a model that connects the State, educational institutions, and businesses.
Regarding trade, he said that the current bilateral trade turnover of 200 million USD is noteworthy but does not yet reflect the full potential of the two sides and therefore needs to be promoted more strongly in the coming period.
To further advance bilateral relations, the two leaders agreed to continue close coordination, further tap the potential and strengths of each country, strengthen connections among businesses, research institutes, universities, and innovation centres, as well as enhance coordination at multilateral forums, including mutual support at the UN and international organisations./.
