PM Le Minh Hung’s working trip to India: Vietnam shapes the future

Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and a high-ranking delegation of Vietnam will attend the 18th BRICS Summit and conduct bilateral  activities in India from today (September 12) to September 13 at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The working trip takes place at a pivotal juncture of the global economic and political landscape, carrying profound strategic significance in both multilateral and bilateral dimensions.

The 18th BRICS Summit takes place amid a rapidly changing and complex global situation. Rising strategic, trade, and technological competition among major powers, alongside geopolitical hotspots in the Middle East, continues to exert profound repercussions on energy markets and global supply chains.

In  this challenging context, BRICS continues to assert its role as the largest gathering of developing countries. After 20 years of formation and development (since 2006), the bloc has expanded to 11 official members and 10 partner countries. Currently, BRICS member states and partners account for approximately 44% of global GDP and 56% of the world’s population, with 7 members belonging to the G20.

Moving beyond traditional economic cooperation, BRICS is expanding robustly into new fields such as innovation, artificial intelligence, healthcare, food security, and sustainable development, thereby strengthening the common voice of developing countries in promoting the reform of global governance systems.

Since becoming the 10th partner country of BRICS in mid-2025, Vietnam has actively and proactively participated in cooperation mechanisms and initiatives within the bloc’s expanded framework with a proactive spirit, making responsible contributions to shared global efforts, upholding multilateralism and international law, and enhancing international solidarity and cooperation. The country has also proactively engaged in cooperation mechanisms and initiatives, contributing to expanding channels for cooperation and experience sharing, and accessing new technological initiatives and trends.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Hang affirms that the BRICS agenda has expanded from economics and finance into fields serving as new growth drivers, such as science and technology, innovation, artificial intelligence, and energy.

"Participation and exchanges at the Summit help us gain a deeper recognition of opportunities and challenges, reference the experience and cooperation orientations of partners, and acquire additional basis for formulating and fine-tuning development policies, thereby realizing the goal of building an independent and self-reliant economy with increasingly effective, substantive, and extensive international integration," Deputy FM Hang says.

With the theme proposed by host India for 2026: "Building resilient foundations, innovation, cooperation, and sustainable development," the participation of the Vietnamese delegation in the Open Plenary Session will contribute to sharing visions and solutions for strengthening supply chains, promoting innovation, and shaping the future of inclusive growth.

This is also an opportunity for Vietnam to access new technological trends, exchange experience, and step up substantive cooperation with leading emerging economies. Professor Sonu Trivedi of Delhi University, senior research fellow at the India Foundation and founding director of the Vietnam Studies Centre, notes  that Vietnam is performing well in its role within global supply chains, with the manufacturing sector presenting major opportunities for BRICS members. Conversely, BRICS also opens up opportunities for the nation to increase cooperation and access vast markets beyond Asia.

With a diverse composition ranging from major powers and middle powers to emerging economies, BRICS can help Vietnam expand its cooperation space with many regions around the world. In this context, Vietnam can play the role of a bridge between BRICS and ASEAN. India can also play an important role in strengthening connectivity between Vietnam and BRICS, thereby helping both sides reap mutual benefits, Professor Sonu Trivedi says.

Prime Minister Le Minh Hưng’s working trip to India is a step to concretize commitments made during the State visit to India by General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and President To Lam in May 2026, when the two countries officially upgraded bilateral relations to the Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

Economy and trade continue to be a prominent bright spot, with two-way trade turnover tripling during the 2016-2025 period to reach a record milestone of US$16.46 billion.

In the first 7 months of 2026, two-way trade maintained its impressive growth momentum, raking in US$11.78 billion, up 28.4% year-on-year. India is currently Vietnam’s 8th largest trading partner, while holding 524 investment projects with a total capital of over US$1.18 billion.

Alongside deepening economic and defense-security cooperation, people-to-people exchanges, culture, education, and tourism have also achieved many positive outcomes. The number of Indian visitors to Vietnam in the first half of 2026 hit nearly 500,000 arrivals, an increase of 45.5%. In addition, India has provided active support in preserving and restoring the Champa cultural heritage at My Son, Da Nang.

Prime Minister Le Minh Hung’s working visit to India to attend the 18th BRICS Summit and conduct bilateral activities serves as a vivid testimony to a proactive, flexible, and resilient Vietnam on the international arena. Through contributing to the common agenda of the BRICS bloc and firmly consolidating strategic relations with India, Vietnam continues to affirm its position as a reliable partner and an important link in the network of economic linkages while enhancing its self-reliance capacity in the face of the era's fluctuations.

Prime Minister Le Minh Hung leaves Hanoi for 18th BRICS Summit

VOV.VN - Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and a high-ranking Vietnamese delegation left Hanoi on the morning of September 12 to attend the 18th BRICS Summit and engage in bilateral activities in India from September 12 to 13, 2026, at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

PM’s attendance at BRICS Summit affirms Vietnam’s role, responsible contributions

Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and a high-level Vietnamese delegation will attend the 18th BRICS Summit and hold bilateral engagements in India on September 12-13, at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.