Also attending the session were Vietnamese Ambassador to the UAE Nguyen Thanh Diep, representatives of Vietnamese ministries and agencies, and officials from Dak Lak Province. The UAE side included the UAE Ambassador to Viet Nam, representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Economy and Tourism, Ministry of Foreign Trade, and several enterprises.
Addressing the session, Assistant Minister Imran Sharaf affirmed that the 6th session of the Viet Nam–UAE Intergovernmental Committee was an important and meaningful event following the elevation of bilateral ties to a Comprehensive Partnership.
He stressed that, built upon a strong political and diplomatic foundation, bilateral cooperation across multiple sectors has achieved positive results and continues to be strengthened and expanded. Both economies, he noted, are increasingly asserting their positions regionally and globally.
For her part, Deputy Minister Phan Thi Thang expressed delight at the achievements in Viet Nam–UAE bilateral relations since the 5th session of the committee in 2023.
Emphasising that the UAE is one of Viet Nam’s leading partners in the Middle East, the Deputy Minister expressed Viet Nam’s desire to strengthen cooperation with the UAE across all sectors. She also proposed that both sides continue coordinating measures to further promote friendship and multifaceted cooperation in the coming period.
At the session, the two sides reviewed the implementation of bilateral cooperation since the 5th session of the Viet Nam–UAE Intergovernmental Committee in 2023, discussed issues of mutual concern, addressed existing obstacles, and exchanged new solutions to strengthen bilateral cooperation across all areas.
Particularly in the economic and trade sector, Viet Nam–UAE bilateral trade turnover averaged 6 billion USD annually during the 2023–2025 period and reached a record high of over 6.5 billion USD in 2025. The two countries still possess considerable potential and room for further expanding cooperation, especially as the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) officially entered into force on 3 February 2026. According to both sides, this milestone opens up numerous new opportunities for the business communities of both countries and is expected to strongly promote bilateral trade and investment in the coming years.
At the session, both sides also recognised significant potential for expanding cooperation in areas such as industry, energy, investment, culture, tourism, banking, construction, information technology and telecommunications, education and training.
Accordingly, the two sides discussed and agreed on a number of orientations and solutions to seize opportunities and strengthen Viet Nam–UAE cooperation across all sectors. Specifically, both sides agreed to intensify high-level and all-level exchanges, continue supporting each other at multilateral forums and international organisations, and encourage industry associations and enterprises to enhance connectivity and participate in trade promotion activities.
The two sides also agreed to consider promoting cooperation in digital infrastructure and emerging technologies; collaborate in human resource training, digital skills development and digital workforce promotion; facilitate the deployment of highly skilled workers for the UAE’s digital transformation projects; and continue enhancing cooperation, information exchange and experience sharing in defence, security and crime prevention.
In addition, the two sides agreed to closely coordinate the early implementation of cooperation mechanisms such as the Joint Working Group on Economic and Trade Cooperation and the Investment Task Force. They also agreed to improve the legal framework for several agreements and memoranda of understanding, including the government-level agreement on customs cooperation and mutual administrative assistance, a visa exemption agreement for ordinary passport holders, memoranda of understanding on cooperation in education and vocational training, and a cooperation agreement in the healthcare sector.
On this occasion, the Vietnamese side proposed that the UAE facilitate the participation of PVN and its member units in providing oil and gas technical services in the UAE and allow them to directly bid for relevant contracts. Viet Nam also requested support in increasing sulphur and refrigerated LPG purchases to meet market demand, and called on the UAE to share experience in establishing and operating international financial centres while encouraging UAE investment funds to invest in financial centres in Viet Nam.
At the same time, Viet Nam called on UAE corporations and major enterprises to consider investing in potential sectors in Viet Nam, including renewable energy, clean energy, green transition, supporting industries, the chemical industry, materials manufacturing, industrial park development, and the development of seaports and integrated free trade zones.
At the 6th session of the Viet Nam–UAE Intergovernmental Committee, on behalf of the Governments of Vietnam and the UAE, Deputy Minister Phan Thi Thang and Assistant Minister Imran Sharaf agreed to adopt and sign the minutes of the session.
Prior to the plenary session, Deputy Minister Phan Thi Thang and Assistant Minister Imran Sharaf also held bilateral talks, during which they conducted in-depth discussions on cooperation opportunities and development orientations in several potential areas of mutual interest, particularly energy, renewable energy, artificial intelligence and information technology.
