The visit is an important foreign affairs activity aimed at strengthening trust and close ties between the two countries’ senior leaders, advancing the sound cooperation between Viet Nam and Singapore, and effectively implementing the high-level strategic dialogue mechanism between the CPV and the PAP.
More than five decades since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1973, Viet Nam and Singapore have built a relationship characterised by growing political trust, intertwined interests, and dynamic cooperation. Bilateral relations have developed strongly, marked by important milestones: the establishment of a strategic partnership in 2013 and its elevation to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2025.
The visits to Singapore by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam in two consecutive years, March 2025 and May 2026, not only demonstrated the high level of political trust and close ties between the two parties and countries but also laid an important political foundation for increasingly extensive, comprehensive, and strategic interlinkages of interests across areas of bilateral cooperation.
Building on political trust and close friendship, Viet Nam–Singapore relations have become increasingly extensive and substantive. Singapore is one of Viet Nam’s leading economic partners. Bilateral trade reached 10.69 billion USD in 2025, up 12.5% from 2024. In the first three months of 2026, Viet Nam’s total import-export turnover with Singapore was estimated at 3.6 billion USD, an increase of 29.3% year on year.
Singapore is Viet Nam’s second-largest foreign investor, with more than 4,500 valid projects and total registered capital of 97 billion USD across a wide range of sectors. The network of 28 Viet Nam–Singapore Industrial Parks (VSIPs) across Viet Nam has become a symbol of successful bilateral cooperation, vividly demonstrating the combination of Singapore’s expertise in planning, governance, and international connectivity with Viet Nam’s potential, resources, and determination for development.
Within the close and effective relationship between the two countries, cooperation between the CPV and the PAP has developed positively while becoming increasingly substantive. Training and capacity-building for officials constitute an important area of cooperation, contributing to improving the quality of human resources in support of each country’s development goals.
In furtherance of the independent, self-reliant, peaceful, and friendly foreign policy of cooperation and development, as well as the diversification and multilateralisation of external relations set out by the 14th National Party Congress, Tran Cam Tu’s official visit to Singapore is expected to further deepen relations between the two ruling parties. It will help consolidate a firm political foundation and promote comprehensive cooperation through party, state, and people-to-people channels.
The visit also demonstrates the determination of both sides to translate high-level common understandings and agreements into concrete action, contributing to a peaceful and stable environment, expanding space for cooperation,and mobilising resources to successfully achieve their development goals.
The first Viet Nam–Singapore Strategic Dialogue provides an important opportunity for the two sides to identify new areas of cooperation beyond traditional sectors and advance bilateral relations into more substantive fields, with a particular focus on emerging sectors.
As an ASEAN leader in artificial intelligence (AI), innovation and high-quality human resource development, Singapore has extensive experience of particular interest to Viet Nam. The two sides will hold in-depth discussions on strategic issues and priority areas of cooperation between the two parties and countries in the coming period. On that basis, Viet Nam and Singapore are expected to strengthen cooperation in technological connectivity, clean energy, green finance, data centres, and semiconductor technology.
The inaugural strategic dialogue holds significant importance for bilateral relations and will make a practical contribution to strengthening ASEAN solidarity, unity, and centrality. Viet Nam and Singapore share core interests in building a united, self-reliant, and resilient ASEAN capable of playing a proactive role in the regional architecture. Coordination between Viet Nam and Singapore, which are two dynamic economies that play active roles in ASEAN, will provide further impetus for intra-bloc cooperation.
The important milestones in Viet Nam–Singapore relations reflect a qualitative step forward in ties between the two parties, while providing a stronger political foundation and fresh momentum to deepen the Viet Nam–Singapore Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in an effective and sustainable manner, for the benefit of the peoples of both countries and for a united and prosperous ASEAN.
