On the occasion of the Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah’s state visit to Vietnam, Vietnamese Ambassador to Brunei Tran Anh Vu spoke with a Voice of Vietnam (VOV) reporter about the significance of the visit and prospects for bilateral economic cooperation.

Ambassador Tran Anh Vu said that, at the invitation of President Luong Cuong, the Sultan’s visit reaffirms both countries’ determination to consolidate and deepen friendly relations and cooperation across all fields following the establishment of the Comprehensive Partnership in 2019.

During the visit, the two sides will review the implementation of cooperative areas under the 2023-2027 action plan adopted during Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s official visit to Brunei in February 2023. The trip provides an opportunity to discuss measures to strengthen cooperation in priority areas such as diplomacy, defence, security, energy, tourism and people-to-people exchanges, as well as other fields of shared interest.

For Brunei, the visit reflects the value it places on its enduring friendship with Vietnam as a trusted partner in ASEAN. For Vietnam, receiving the Sultan supports the Party and State’s foreign policy of giving priority to ties with ASEAN member states, consolidating and expanding all-around cooperation with Brunei, and contributing to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region.

Economic and trade cooperation, a key pillar of the Comprehensive Partnership, has recorded positive progress in recent years. In 2024, two-way trade exceeded US$670 million, surpassing the target of US$500 million set for 2025.

Over the past 10 months of 2025, Vietnam’s exports to Brunei rose by more than 30% compared with the same period last year. These results provide a basis for the two countries to pursue higher, more balanced and sustainable trade, including the goal of lifting bilateral trade to US$1 billion in the 2030-2035 period.

To achieve this objective, Ambassador Tran outlined several priorities. The two sides should step up cooperation in areas of mutual interest and strength, notably energy and oil and gas trade, as well as sectors with active exchanges such as seafood.

They should also capitalise on opportunities in new fields, particularly the Halal industry, where Vietnam has growing production capacity while Brunei has strengths in Halal certification and experience in the Halal economy.

In addition, Vietnamese businesses could consider making use of Brunei as an important gateway to the Borneo island market, with a population of more than 20 million, and the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines growth quadrangle, home to more than 80 million consumers.

The two countries are expected to sign an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Halal cooperation during the visit and strengthen coordination in the fisheries sector, especially in combating illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

Vietnam is currently carrying out a national project to build and develop its Halal industry through 2030 and has cooperated closely with regional partners including Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei, all of which possess reputable Halal certification systems and experience in the field. The upcoming framework will provide an important foundation for businesses from both sides to promote exchanges and pursue concrete cooperation in Halal-related activities.

In fisheries and IUU prevention, Vietnam and Brunei have established mechanisms including an IUU hotline and annual dialogues between their fisheries agencies. These arrangements contribute to solidifying mutual trust and understanding in related areas and support Vietnam’s international cooperation efforts as it works to remove the European Commission’s “yellow card” on its fisheries sector.

Building on the existing cooperation framework, the Vietnamese diplomat expressed hope that enterprises from the two countries would soon advance practical partnerships in capture fisheries and aquaculture-areas in which Vietnam has notable strengths and where Brunei is seeking to diversify its partners.

The ambassador said the Sultan’s state visit is both a demonstration of growing strategic trust and an important opportunity to augment more substantive cooperation across priority areas between Vietnam and Brunei.

Sultan of Brunei Haji Hassanal to make state visit to Vietnam

VOV.VN - Sultan of Brunei Darussalam Haji Hassanal will pay a state visit to Vietnam from November 30 to December 2 at the invitation of State President Luong Cuong, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Sultan’s visit demonstrates Brunei’s high regard for Vietnam: Ambassador

The upcoming State visit to Vietnam by Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah demonstrates Brunei’s high regard for Vietnam as a reliable partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Vietnamese Ambassador to Brunei Tran Anh Vu has told the Vietnam News Agency (VNA)’s correspondent on the thresholds of the trip.