Azerbaijan, Vietnam Reaffirm Strategic Partnership, Explore Expanded Bilateral Cooperation

Baku, The Gulf Observer: President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva met with Vice President of Vietnam Vo Thi Anh Xuan in Baku on October 14, reaffirming the strategic partnership between the two countries and discussing prospects for expanding cooperation across multiple sectors.

During the meeting, President Ilham Aliyev thanked the Vietnamese Vice President for participating in the upcoming Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in Baku. He noted that her visit also provided an opportunity to discuss key issues on the bilateral agenda.

Recalling his visit to Vietnam and the visit to Azerbaijan by To Lam, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, President Aliyev highlighted the significance of the discussions held during these visits. He reiterated the importance of the strategic partnership between the two countries and expressed appreciation for Vietnam’s support for extending Azerbaijan’s chairmanship of CICA.

Vo Thi Anh Xuan thanked President Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva for the warm reception and recalled her previous visit to Azerbaijan. She congratulated Azerbaijan on its achievements, its successful chairmanship of CICA and the organization of the upcoming summit in Baku, noting Vietnam’s appreciation for Azerbaijan’s leadership of the organization.

The Vietnamese Vice President emphasized the historical ties between the two countries, highlighting the importance of the Joint Statement on establishing a strategic partnership adopted during To Lam’s visit to Azerbaijan. She said the agreement had contributed significantly to elevating bilateral relations to a new level.

Both sides also recalled historic exchanges between the two nations, including visits to Azerbaijan by Vietnamese President Ho Chi Minh and visits to Vietnam by National Leader Heydar Aliyev during his tenure in the Soviet leadership and by President Ilham Aliyev. They underscored the importance of this shared history in strengthening bilateral relations.

Vo Thi Anh Xuan expressed Vietnam’s appreciation for Azerbaijan’s support for its development following its struggle for independence, particularly in restoring the energy sector and training qualified personnel. She noted that this assistance had established a strong historical foundation for cooperation and recalled that thousands of Vietnamese students had studied in Azerbaijan during the Soviet era.

The discussions covered cooperation within international organizations and opportunities to expand collaboration in the economy, trade, transport and logistics, renewable energy, tourism and investment. The sides also explored the possibility of introducing a visa-free regime to facilitate exchanges, in line with the strong political ties between the two countries.

In the energy sector, the two sides noted the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Azerbaijan’s State Oil Company (SOCAR) and PetroVietnam and discussed opportunities to further develop their partnership.

The Vietnamese Vice President also expressed gratitude for the humanitarian and cultural projects carried out in Vietnam by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, led by Azerbaijan’s First Vice President Mehriban Aliyeva. She fondly recalled the visit to Vietnam by Leyla Aliyeva, Vice President of the Foundation.

The meeting underscored the shared commitment of Azerbaijan and Vietnam to building on their strategic partnership, strengthening economic and cultural ties, and pursuing new avenues of mutually beneficial cooperation.