Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha delivered remarks via video message.

Those in attendance at the event included Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko, Co-Chair of the Russia–Vietnam Inter-governmental Committee for Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation; First Deputy Chair of the Federation Council Andrei Yatskin; Russian Deputy Minister of Education and Science Konstantin Mogilevsky; Vietnamese Ambassador to Russia Dang Minh Khoi; First Vice President of the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST) Tran Hong Thai; and Plekhanov University Rector Ivan Lobanov. The event also drew a large number of leaders from ministries, agencies and higher-education institutions of both countries.

Welcoming participating scholars, Deputy Prime Minister Chernyshenko noted that this year marks the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations and that President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin has emphasized the development of a special relationship between the two nations over the decades.

Russia was honored to welcome Party General Secretary To Lam on his official visit in May, during which he attended events commemorating the 80th anniversary of the Great Patriotic War.

Chernyshenko added that hosting the “Russia-Vietnam: 75 Years of Cooperation” forum at Plekhanov University where more than 1,000 international students are enrolled, including 263 from Vietnam with strong academic performance, is particularly meaningful.

For his part, Federation Council First Deputy Chairman Andrei Yatskin said his recent visit to Vietnam gave him a clear sense of the country’s reform momentum and achievements. Vietnamese people, he noted, have strong confidence in major higher-education projects the two countries plan to complete in 2026.

In his recorded message to the forum, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha recalled his years of study in Russia. He described human-resource training in the former Soviet Union as a strategic and invaluable contribution to Vietnam’s development, a gift akin to handing Vietnam a “golden key” to knowledge. Generations of Vietnamese scientists, leaders and managers who trained in the Soviet Union and today’s Russia have become an invaluable asset- a “red thread” connecting the two peoples.

Building on this history, the two sides aim for a trusted, enduring and effective partnership in the digital era and the knowledge-based economy, working together toward a prosperous future for each nation and broader progress for humanity. Tran Hong Ha added that beyond their traditional strengths in fundamental science, the two countries can broaden cooperation into strategic technologies.

Ambassador Dang Minh Khoi stressed that cooperation in science and education has long served,  and will continue to serve as a solid bridge between the two nations, dating back to the early years of diplomatic ties when President Ho Chi Minh sent the first group of Vietnamese officials to study in the Soviet Union.

The forum’s opening-day agenda included a plenary session on strategic partnership, a signing ceremony for a maritime-research roadmap, and thematic discussions on hydrology, ecology, biomedicine and pharmacology.

Speaking to the press in Russia, Professor Tran Hong Thai, First Vice President of the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, highlighted science and technology as a long-term cooperation area.

Over the past 75 years, cooperation between Vietnam, the former Soviet Union and today’s Russia has built a solid foundation enabling Vietnam to absorb Russian technology as well as technologies from other countries. With 2026 designated as a year of focus on science and training, he said the period opens a new phase for long-term cooperation.

Looking ahead, he said cooperation can expand from fundamental sciences into other essential fields for Vietnam, including nuclear energy, high-speed rail technology, heat-resistant materials and ecological technologies.

On the same day, Professor Tran Hong Thai and Yuri Kulchin, Vice President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, signed a cooperation agreement between the two academies.

Regarding financing, a crucial dimension of cooperation, Ngo Si Quoc, Deputy Executive Director of the National Foundation for Science and Technology Development (NAFOSTED), said the foundation has recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Russian Science Foundation (RSF) on joint selection and funding of advanced research projects in natural sciences, engineering, social sciences and the humanities.

Under the MoU RSF will fund Russian research teams with 4-7 million rubles per year depending on project scale, while NAFOSTED will support Vietnamese research teams with up to VND10 billion over a three-year cycle, with the possibility of higher funding for projects of exceptional academic value or strong application potential. These commitments, he added, reflect both sides’ confidence in effective cooperation in the field.

Across the three-day forum, multiple sessions also covered social and humanitarian cooperation, inter-university partnerships and cultural dialogue.

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