Vietnam – Saudi Arabia cooperation: Plenty of room for improvement

Ambassador Dung sheds light on the prospects for cooperation between the two countries during a recent interview granted to VOV.

VOV: Could you share major highlights in Vietnam-Saudi Arabia relations in 2024?
Ambassador Dang Xuan Dung: 2024 is a special year for both Vietnam and Saudi Arabia as the two countries jointly celebrated 25 years of their diplomacy with activities held in both countries. The most notable event was the working visit of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh to Saudi Arabia and his participation in the eighth Future Investment Initiative Forum in October. During the visit, the two Prime Ministers agreed in principle to upgrade Vietnam-Saudi Arabia relations in the near future, creating new momentum for stronger bilateral relations in 2025 and beyond.

The second highlight was the first-ever Vietnam Day held in capital Riyadh in December. The event attracted thousands of visitors, with local residents showing great interest in the traditional Vietnamese cultural and art products.

Economic, trade, and investment cooperation is worthy of note, yielding encouraging results. The past 11 months of the year saw two-way trade exceed US$2.82 billion, with Vietnam achieving a trade surplus of over US$152 million.

Another noteworthy event was the establishment of a regional office by Vietnam’s leading telecom giant FPT in Riyadh in late October, making it the first Vietnamese company to open an office in the country. The inauguration lays the foundation for FPT’s expansion in the highly promising Saudi Arabian market in the fields of information technology and artificial intelligence.

The final highlight was that some Vietnamese construction firms have secured subcontracting projects in Saudi Arabia’s massive construction projects, while others are now bidding for additional projects. This is an encouraging signal that Vietnamese businesses are increasingly interested in doing business in Saudi Arabia, particularly in areas where Vietnam has strengths and Saudi Arabia has demand.

VOV: How do you evaluate the advantages and prospects for Vietnam-Saudi Arabia cooperation in the future?
Ambassador Dang Xuan Dung: With the encouraging results recorded in 2024, especially the agreement by senior leaders on upgrading bilateral relations, I believe that the prospects for Vietnam-Saudi Arabia cooperation in 2025 and beyond are quite bright. There is ample room for further development across various areas, including politics-diplomacy, trade, investment, labour, and tourism.

I would like to emphasize that economic, trade, and investment cooperation is an area with great potential that needs to be more fully tapped into. Both Saudi Arabia and Vietnam have unique strengths that complement each other, especially as the two countries are advancing national plans to modernize and diversify their economies in the digital and technological era.

In 2025, labour cooperation will also likely grow as more skilled Vietnamese workers are employed in Saudi Arabia under contracts, meeting the country’s increasing need for manpower to accelerate its Saudi Vision 2030 plans. In addition, people-to-people exchanges and tourism are expected to develop positively, with more Saudi tourists planning to visit Vietnam to explore business opportunities and cultural experiences.

VOV: What solutions would you propose to further enhance the effectiveness of Vietnam-Saudi Arabia cooperation in the future?
Ambassador Dang Xuan Dung: Upgrading bilateral relations to a new level soon will serve as a crucial catalyst for comprehensive and effective cooperation in the future. To effectively implement the high-level agreement, I believe that all entities promoting relations should be more proactive and dynamic in performing their duties.

First of all, ministries, agencies, and localities should enhance the effectiveness of delegation exchanges to both strengthen political trust and accurately identify areas of potential cooperation. They should also push for negotiations, sign practical cooperation agreements, rigorously implement bilateral agreements, and consider establishing new cooperation mechanisms in line with the development of bilateral relations.

Second, the Embassy will continue to take the initiative in researching, giving advice, and identifying new and promising cooperation opportunities. We will promptly inform ministries, agencies, and localities about changes in policies, management mechanisms, and emerging trends in Saudi Arabia and the region. furthermore, we will actively support localities and businesses from both sides in exploring investment and business opportunities.

Third, businesses need to be more proactive in promoting exports of their key products, including agricultural products, seafood, rice, coffee, electronics, and machinery, and gaining a firm foothold for these items in the Saudi Arabian market. They should also actively explore cooperation opportunities in areas where Saudi Arabia has demand, such as information technology, artificial intelligence, smart cities, construction, and skilled labour.

I firmly believe that, with the determination of senior leaders, ministries, agencies, localities, and businesses from both countries, the proposed solutions will help enhance the effectiveness of Vietnam-Saudi Arabia cooperation in the future, better serving the interests of businesses and people in both countries.

VOV: Thank you very much.