State President Luong Cuong, his spouse, and a high-level Vietnamese delegation have successfully concluded a state visit to the Arab Republic of Egypt and the Republic of Angola. This visit holds exceptional significance, reflecting the stature of Viet Nam’s foreign policy in the new era. It not only sought to elevate Viet Nam’s relations with important regional partners to new heights, particularly Egypt and Angola, but also reaffirmed the important policy message of our Party and state towards all African countries.

Elevating Viet Nam – Egypt relations

The state visit to Egypt by President Luong Cuong marked a new milestone in bilateral ties. With the desire to further consolidate political trust and elevate relations to a deeper and more comprehensive level, during the visit, senior leaders of Viet Nam and Egypt agreed to upgrade their bilateral relationship to a comprehensive partnership. This upgrade reflects the stature of bilateral relations in the new period, establishing greater political trust at all levels, and expanding the scope and depth of cooperation towards a more comprehensive, substantive and profound manner across all fields.

During the state visit to Egypt, President Luong Cuong held a highly successful meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, as well as courtesy calls on the Egyptian Prime Minister, Speaker of the Senate, and Speaker of the House of Representatives to discuss measures to strengthen cooperation between the two countries.

At the talks, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, on behalf of the Egyptian people, expressed his delight at welcoming President Luong Cuong and his spouse, affirming that the state visit by the president and the high-level Vietnamese delegation was a significant milestone, opening a new chapter of cooperation in bilateral relations after more than 60 years of diplomatic ties.

The Egyptian President expressed deep admiration for President Ho Chi Minh, praised the proud history and remarkable development achievements that Viet Nam has attained under the wise leadership of the Communist Party of Viet Nam, and voiced his wish to further promote the traditional friendship and enduring bond with Viet Nam as between brothers.

President Luong Cuong recalled the warm affection that President Ho Chi Minh and the Vietnamese people have expressed towards Egypt, reaffirming Viet Nam’s appreciation for the bilateral relationship nurtured by President Ho Chi Minh, President Gamal Abdel Nasser, and generations of leaders and peoples of both countries since the early days of the struggle for national liberation.

In a warm and open atmosphere, the two leaders discussed the socio-economic development situation of each country, affirming their determination to create breakthroughs in bilateral cooperation across all areas. They also discussed opportunities to expand cooperation into new fields such as innovation, science and technology, green transition, and digital transformation, while agreeing to continue perfecting bilateral legal frameworks as a foundation for comprehensive cooperation between the two countries.

On that basis, in line with the stature of bilateral ties, the aspirations of both peoples, and the desire to contribute to peace, stability, cooperation, and development in each region and globally, the two sides agreed to upgrade their relationship to a comprehensive partnership. They also agreed to establish a working group to study the feasibility of negotiating a Viet Nam – Egypt free trade agreement; to promote educational cooperation and people-to-people exchanges; and to enhance tourism promotion and connectivity, showcasing each country’s destinations, culture, and people.

A notable result of the visit was that State President of Viet Nam Luong Cuong and President of Egypt Abdel Fattah El-Sisi witnessed the signing ceremony of many important cooperation documents, including a memorandum of understanding on economic cooperation between the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Viet Nam and the Ministry of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation of Egypt; and a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the field of local development between the Ministry of Home Affairs of Viet Nam and the Ministry of Local Development of Egypt.

Within the framework of the visit, the ministries of national defence of the two countries also signed a letter of intent on defence cooperation and a memorandum of understanding between the Viet Nam Peacekeeping Department and the Liaison Office with International Organisations of Egypt. Leaders of ministries, sectors, and enterprises of both sides also held working sessions and reached many other agreements in the fields of finance, trade, agriculture, and oil and gas exploration.

At the meeting with State President Luong Cuong, Prime Minister of Egypt Mostafa Madbouly expressed his warm affection and admiration for Viet Nam’s country and people, congratulated Viet Nam on its outstanding development achievements, and shared his belief that Viet Nam will realise its goal of becoming a developed, high-income country by 2045.

The state president requested that the Egyptian Prime Minister to pay attention to and create favourable conditions for the Viet Nam community residing there to do business and live stably, thereby contributing to the development of Egypt and the bilateral relationship.

Egyptian Prime Minister Madbouly:

Viet Nam and Egypt have many similarities. Both sides can enhance cooperation, effectively exploit the potential in bilateral relations, including actively coordinating toward initiating negotiations of the Viet Nam-Egypt Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on the basis of equality, balance, and mutual benefit, striving to increase trade turnover. Egypt will be a bridge connecting Viet Nam with markets in the Middle East-Africa region and Arab countries. Egypt is ready to facilitate Vietnamese enterprises doing business in Egypt and welcome Vietnamese students to study at Islamic Universities and schools in Egypt.

At meetings with the Chairman of the Egyptian Senate Abdel-Wahab Abdel-Razeq and Chairman of the Egyptian House of Representatives Hanafy El Gebaly, the state president proposed that the two parliaments closely coordinate and support the effective implementation of bilateral cooperation mechanisms; support negotiation, completion of policies and agreements, and improve the legal framework to strengthen cooperation between businesses, open markets for goods of both sides, and connect the peoples of both countries.

To further develop Viet Nam–Egypt relations for the benefit, prosperity, and happiness of the peoples of both countries in the coming time, both sides agreed to further promote the role of parliamentary diplomacy, enhance cooperation between the two parliaments through increasing exchanges of parliamentary leadership delegations, leadership of specialised committees of both legislative bodies to share legislative and supervisory experiences; continue close coordination between the two parliaments, promote cooperation between the Arab Parliamentary Group and the Asian Parliamentary Group at multilateral parliamentary forums, and foster exchanges between young parliamentarians and female parliamentarians. Both sides agreed to soon establish the Viet Nam-Egypt Parliamentary Friendship Association to regularly exchange views and propose measures to strengthen parliamentary cooperation between the two countries.

As part of the state visit to Egypt, President Luong Cuong, his spouse, and the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation, visited the Gamal Abdel Nasser Museum. This is a special cultural and historical site of Egypt, dedicated to commemorating and honouring the life and career of late President Gamal Abdel Nasser – one of the most influential political figures in the Arab world in the 20th century. The museum offers deep insights into the life of late President Gamal Abdel Nasser – from his youth, his revolutionary activities, to his influential political decisions in the region and globally. He was also a great source of inspiration for the national liberation movements of many third world countries.

In the exhibition area of the museum, there is also a portrait of President Ho Chi Minh, which he gave to President Gamal Abdel Nasser in the early 1960s when the two countries began diplomatic relations. The portrait was later carefully preserved by the Egyptian leader in his family’s collection.

The President’s entry in the museum’s guestbook states: “I am deeply moved to see the portrait of President Ho Chi Minh – a national liberation hero and world cultural celebrity – signed and presented by him to President Gamal Abdel Nasser, a profound testament to the sentiments between the two leaders; and to the solidarity and friendship between the peoples of Viet Nam and Egypt. I believe that the values and ideals of President Gamal Abdel Nasser will continue to be a guiding light for future generations, strengthening friendship and mutual understanding between nations, including Viet Nam.”

A breakthrough in Viet Nam - Angola relations

Within the framework of his state visit to the Republic of Angola, President Luong Cuong held talks with President João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço. On behalf of the Angolan people, President Lourenço warmly welcomed President Luong Cuong, his spouse, and the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation to Angola, affirming that the visit is of special significance, marking a historic milestone and laying a solid foundation for bilateral cooperation to enter a new stage of deeper and stronger development.

Expressing his pleasure at visiting Angola for the first time, especially in the special context of the two countries celebrating the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations (1975–2025) and Angola preparing to mark the 50th anniversary of its Independence Day, President Luong Cuong thanked President Lourenço, other leaders, and the people of Angola for the warm and respectful welcome extended to the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation.

During the talks, President Luong Cuong and President Lourenço reviewed important milestones in the history of bilateral relations, which originated from the days of solidarity in the struggle for national liberation and unification, with the friendship symbol of Ho Chi Minh Avenue in the centre of Luanda, the capital of Angola.

The two leaders agreed to continue to strengthen the solidarity, cohesion and trust between the two Parties and countries through maintaining the exchange of high-level visits and contacts through all channels, effectively implementing the Intergovernmental Committee mechanism, and promoting cooperation in areas such as human resource training and student exchange.

Reaffirming Angola’s status as a top African partner of Viet Nam, President Luong Cuong noted the untapped potential in bilateral cooperation and proposed working together to build a cooperative partnership for mutual development, setting a model for South-South collaboration.

To achieve this, the Vietnamese leader advocated for sustained political solidarity and trust, stronger national defence-security ties, diversified collaboration in traditional sectors such as healthcare, education, and agriculture,

Sharing the host’s stance on the importance of elevating trade and investment ties, President Luong Cuong suggested Angolan authorities support Vietnamese firms in pursuing projects in the fields of oil and gas, energy, mineral exploitation and processing, and metallurgy.

He proposed boosting trade promotion, business connections, and banking cooperation, alongside accelerating negotiations for key economic agreements to achieve a bilateral trade target of 1 billion USD in the near future.

Highlighting the role of the Vietnamese community in Angola, who has always accompanied the Angolan people through the most difficult periods of times, President Luong Cuong urged Angolan authorities to ensure the safety and stability of the Vietnamese community in Angola, enabling them to contribute to the development of both nations.

President Luong Cuong and President João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço issued the Viet Nam-Angola Joint Statment, reflecting their mutual commitment and determination to open a new chapter in bilateral cooperation.

Under the theme “Elevating the Viet Nam-Angola relationship to a new level, becoming a bridge to promote peace, cooperation, and sustainable development in Southeast Asia and Africa”, President Luong Cuong delivered a policy speech at the special plenary session of the Angolan National Assembly. To inaugurate a new phase in the relationship between the two sides, the State President proposed five orientations for Viet Nam-Angola cooperation in the coming time.

During her meeting with President Luong Cuong, Speaker of the Angolan National Assembly Carolina Cerqueira highlighted the wish to enhance cooperation with the Vietnamese NA and Government agencies to promote the perfection of a legal framework for bilateral collaboration. She also called for stepping up exchanges between the countries’ young and female parliamentarians, helping reinforce ties in science – technology, culture, and people-to-people links. 

For his part, President Luong Cuong expressed his honour to visit and deliver a policy speech at the Angolan National Assembly, noting that this was a crucial occasion for Viet Nam to share its development orientations, viewpoints on the international and regional situation, and directions for developing relations with Angola 50 years since the establishment of diplomatic ties.

During the state visit to Angola, President Luong Cuong and his spouse attended the ceremony commemorating the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Viet Nam and Angola (November 12, 1975-2025).

This state visit to Angola once again strongly affirms that Viet Nam attaches importance to the relationship with Angola, wishing to take it into a new phase that is deeper in political terms, stronger economically, and more open in terms of people-to-people exchanges.

Viet Nam also wishes to make the relationship with Angola, one of Viet Nam’s leading trusted partners in Africa, serve as a model for further promoting multifaceted cooperative relations between Viet Nam and brotherly African countries.