Marking the first visit to the Philippines by a General Secretary of the Communist Party of Viet Nam, the state visit by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam is an event of historic significance for both countries. Notably, the visit takes place as Viet Nam and the Philippines celebrate the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations, a shining milestone in the development of bilateral ties.
With its special significance, the visit reaffirms Viet Nam’s high regard for its friendship and cooperation with the Philippines, as well as for ASEAN, while generating new momentum to advance the Viet Nam-Philippines Strategic Partnership to a higher, more substantive and effective level in the coming period.
Viet Nam and the Philippines, both members of ASEAN, share many strategic interests in maintaining peace, stability, cooperation and development in Southeast Asia. The bond between the two countries dates back to the 15th century, when their people established trading relations.
The year 2026 marks a milestone in the history of bilateral friendship and cooperation, as the two countries celebrate the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations. After Viet Nam joined ASEAN in 1995, Viet Nam-Philippines relations entered a new stage, developing strongly across various fields. The two countries established a Strategic Partnership in 2015 and have promoted important cooperation mechanisms such as the Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation and political consultations.
Traditional friendship and political trust have provided a firm foundation for Viet Nam and the Philippines to reap many achievements over the past half century. In recent years, bilateral relations have maintained positive momentum, especially in economy, maritime and ocean, and security and defence, while the two sides have also coordinated well on regional and international issues.
Two-way trade has recorded impressive growth, expanding at an average rate of more than 10% per year during the 2015-2025 period. It reached 7.8 billion USD in 2025, with the two countries aiming to raise the figure to 10 billion USD in the coming time.
Alongside economic cooperation, collaboration between Viet Nam and the Philippines has made positive progress in many fields. Defence-security, maritime and ocean cooperation has become an important pillar, increasingly substantive and highly institutionalised.
The two sides have established various cooperation mechanisms in defence and security, including the joint working group on bilateral defence cooperation, exchanges between young military officers of the two countries, and conferences on maritime security information sharing. Cultural cooperation and people-to-people exchanges have also expanded.
In 2025, the number of Filipino visitors to Viet Nam increased by 81.3%, while the number of flights between the two countries rose by 59% compared with 2024.
On the international stage, the two sides have maintained coordination in addressing regional issues within ASEAN and other multilateral forums. As the Philippines assumes the ASEAN Chairmanship in 2026, the state visit to the Philippines by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam sends a message of Viet Nam’s support for and companionship with the Philippines’ efforts to strengthen ASEAN solidarity and centrality, and to promote the building of a peaceful, stable, prosperous and resilient Southeast Asia.
Taking place as Viet Nam and the Philippines celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations, the State visit to the Philippines by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam opens up an opportunity for leaders of the two countries to review the past journey of cooperation and shape a vision for bilateral relations in the new stage.
May the visit by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam, his spouse and the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation be a great success, creating new momentum for the relations between the two countries to develop ever more strongly, substantively and effectively.
