Deputy Foreign Minister highlights significance of Prime Minister's upcoming tour to Russia

Deputy Foreign Minister Dang Hoang Giang made the above statement during a recent interview ahead of the Prime Minister's Russia tour.

This is Le's first visit to Russia in his capacity as Prime Minister of Viet Nam, Dang noted.

The visit stands a a testament to the Southeast Asian country's consistent pursuance of its foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, self-strengthening, peace, friendship, cooperation, development, diversification and multilateralization of external relations adopted at the 14^th National Party Congress.

The visit conveys Viet Nam's clear message of attaching importance to the strategic partnership between ASEAN and Russia, as well as the traditional friendship, strategic trust, and effective cooperation between Viet Nam and Russia over the past decades.

Dang said Viet Nam has played a key role in creating ASEAN's consensus over the past time and is set to serve as the country coordinator for the ASEAN-Russia relations for 2027-2030.

This year's commemorative summit is an important event for Viet Nam to make greater contributions to shaping ASEAN-Russia relations in the coming years, he added.

Specifically, Viet Nam will focus on such priorities as promoting a substantive and balanced approach to ASEAN-Russia relations; expanding cooperation space between ASEAN and the Eurasia region; enhancing mutual understanding, narrowing differences, and consolidating trust between ASEAN and Russia and other regional partners.

Leaders to the summit will conduct comprehensive review of ASEAN-Russia relations and chart new orientations to foster substantive and mutually beneficial cooperation, particularly in the field of energy security; compare notes on regional and international issues of shared concern to increase mutual understanding, consolidate strategic trust, and address common challenges on the basis of international law.

During his stay in Russia, Prime Minister Le will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss ways to beef up cooperation with Russia, said the Deputy Foreign Minister.