Panama's President José Raúl Mulino accorded official welcome ceremony in Ha Noi
VGP - General Secretary and President To Lam hosted an official welcome ceremony for Panama's President José Raúl Mulino at the Parliament Building in Ha Noi on October 6.
General Secretary and President To Lam (left) and Panama's President José Raúl Mulino inspect the Guard of Honor at the Parliament Building in Ha Noi, October 6, 2026. Photo: VGP
Dignitaries at the ceremony include Standing Politburo member, Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia Tuc; Politburo member, Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung; Chairman of the Presidential Office Le Khanh Hai; Minister of Construction Tran Hong Minh.
Following the welcome ceremony, General Secretary and President To Lam held talks with President José Raúl Mulino and witnessed the exchange of cooperation agreements between the two countries.
Viet Nam and Panama established diplomatic relations on August 28, 1975, and celebrated the 50th founding anniversary of bilateral ties in 2025. Over the past more than five decades, the bilateral ties have been strengthened through high-level exchanges, cooperation mechanisms and coordination at multilateral forums.
Economic and trade cooperation remains an important pillar of bilateral relations. Two-way trade reached US$478.1 million in 2025, up 19.2 percent year on year. Viet Nam mainly exports footwear, phones and components, computers and electronic products, textiles and garments, vehicles and spare parts, and seafood to Panama.
With its strategic location and the Panama Canal, Panama serves as an important logistics and trade gateway to Central America and the Caribbean, while Viet Nam can serve as a bridge for Panamanian businesses to access ASEAN markets.
Both sides see significant potential for cooperation in trade, investment, logistics, maritime transport, port infrastructure, agriculture, banking, telecommunications, renewable energy, tourism and education./.