A new channel of strategic, long-term, and substantive cooperation
This pivotal diplomatic event took place in August, a month of profound historical significance for both countries and for the development of Viet Nam–Singapore relations. It was an occasion to commemorate the National Days of the two countries and recall the milestones marking the beginning of their journeys towards building independent, resilient, dynamic, and strongly rising nations.
For Viet Nam, it marked the 81st anniversary of the August Revolution and National Day, while Singapore celebrated its 61st National Day. It was also 53 years ago, in August 1973, that Viet Nam and Singapore officially established diplomatic relations, launching a process of cultivating trust, promoting cooperation, and working together for peace, stability, and development in each country and the broader region.
After more than half a century, Viet Nam and Singapore have forged a special relationship characterised by increasingly high political trust, growing intertwined interests, and increasingly substantive cooperation. From a strategic partnership in 2013 to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2025, bilateral relations have continued to expand in both breadth and depth.
This visit marked yet another historic milestone in relations between the two Parties and the two countries, as it was the first official visit to Singapore by a standing member of the Secretariat. It also witnessed the official and effective launch of the strategic dialogue mechanism, which the two sides’ leaders agreed to establish during General Secretary and President To Lam’s state visit to Singapore last May.
The establishment and successful organisation of the first Strategic Dialogue between the two ruling parties opened a new channel of strategic, long-term, and substantive cooperation, propelling relations between the two Parties and the two countries into a new stage of development.
A highlight of the dialogue was the forum it provided for senior leaders from both sides to engage in robust discussions on two topics: developing a future-ready workforce and building a new model of technology cooperation. Both are issues of strategic importance to the development of the two countries.
Through the dialogue, the two sides agreed to establish cooperation in human resource development and cadre training as one of the important pillars of cooperation between the two Parties, with a view to building a contingent of cadres with strategic thinking, modern governance capabilities, and the capacity to formulate policies and organise their effective implementation. The two sides also issued the Viet Nam–Singapore Joint Statement on Technology Connectivity Strategy.
Singapore’s commitment to accompanying and sharing experience with Viet Nam
During meetings and talks with Standing member of the Secretariat Tran Cam Tu, Singaporean leaders deeply appreciated the significance of his visit and expressed their belief that its outcomes, together with the success of the first Viet Nam–Singapore Strategic Dialogue, would further strengthen political trust, enhance mutual understanding between the two countries’ leaders, and create fresh momentum for deeper, more substantive, and effective Singapore–Viet Nam relations.
Singaporean leaders expressed their appreciation of Viet Nam’s role, potential, and development prospects, and their desire to continue accompanying Viet Nam in its development process.
They agreed that there remains vast untapped potential for both sides to expand cooperation from traditional areas into sectors with greater technological, knowledge, and added-value content, as affirmed by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.
With notable achievements across three areas of enhancing strategic exchanges and coordination between the two Parties; creating breakthroughs in scientific and technological connectivity; and enhancing cooperation in cadre training, the outcomes of the visit and the commitments made at the dialogue provide compelling evidence of the process of translating shared perceptions between the two Parties into concrete programmes and cooperation outcomes; turning political trust into a driving force for development, for the benefit of the two countries and for a united and prosperous ASEAN.
Through a wide range of activities, from high-level engagements to public diplomacy, Standing member of the Secretariat Tran Cam Tu and the high-level Party delegation were warmly received by international friends and the Vietnamese community in Singapore.
At the ceremony marking the 81st anniversary of Viet Nam’s National Day, a large number of international guests, intellectuals, businesses, and Vietnamese expatriates came to offer their congratulations and share in the sacred values of Viet Nam’s independence, freedom, peace, and development.
According to People’s Action Party (PAP) Deputy Secretary-General Chan Chun Sing, Singapore and Viet Nam enjoy a close and enduring friendship, cultivated by generations of leaders. The Singapore–Viet Nam Strategic Dialogue has opened a new mechanism, enabling the leaders of the two sides to regularly share experience in Party building, national governance, policy formulation, and long-term vision.
During a field visit and exchange of experience on the organisational model and methods used by the PAP to engage with voters, the two leaders spoke highly of each Party’s approach, which ultimately seeks to better serve the people’s lives.
Tu noted that voter engagement activities and close contact with the people demonstrate that the two Parties share the common goal of maintaining close ties with the people and caring for all aspects of their lives. This similarity provides a solid foundation of political trust for strengthening multifaceted cooperation between the two Parties.
From each country’s historical memories to their vision for the future, Viet Nam and Singapore share a common aspiration for national independence and resilience.
The new development in relations between the two Parties and the two countries demonstrates that, while Viet Nam and Singapore differ in sizes, development models, and historical circumstances, they share a strategic thinking that places importance on peace, independence, self-reliance, and sustainable development based on endogenous capabilities, while proactively integrating internationally and capitalising on development opportunities of the times.
With the strategic orientations for Viet Nam–Singapore cooperation agreed upon by the two countries’ senior leaders, the requirement is not only to deepen traditional areas of cooperation but also to pioneer new spaces for cooperation in science and technology development, innovation, green transition, supply-chain connectivity, and human resource development.
The visit by Standing member of the Secretariat Tran Cam Tu was not merely a high-level diplomatic engagement; it also conveyed a message of determination to bring Viet Nam–Singapore relations into a new phase that is deeper politically, more substantive in cooperation, broader in development space, and more responsible towards the future of ASEAN.
From the initial milestone to the subsequent steps in cooperation and development, Viet Nam–Singapore relations provide vivid evidence that when two countries share trust, are willing to exchange experience, and are determined to act together, their differences are not a distance between them but can become complementary conditions for jointly building a better future in the decades ahead.
