Vietnam, Singapore look towards stronger strategic partnership

National Assembly (NA) Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan (R) and Singaporean Ambassador to Vietnam Catherine Wong Siow Ping have discussed the Vietnamese top legislator's upcoming visit to Singapore at a recent meeting in Hanoi.

In September 2013, Vietnam and Singapore issued a joint statement on the establishment of Vietnam-Singapore Strategic Partnership during the visit to Vietnam by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of their diplomatic relations.

Over the past nearly 45 years since the establishment of diplomatic ties on August 1, 1973, the friendship and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Singapore have grown in a pragmatic and effective manner in all five pillars: political ties based on mutual trust, economic links, security and defence cooperation, increased cooperation in other fields such as education, law, health care, culture-arts-sport and cooperation at international and regional forum within the "Strategic Partnership” framework.

Singapore-Vietnam strategic partnership has continued to see substantial development based on mutual trust over recent years, evidenced by regular high-level exchange visits at all levels and expanded cooperation at Party, State, NA and government levels. 

Bilateral cooperation across economics-trade -investment, national defence-security, education- training, transportation, tourism, finance and has progressed steadily.

Since 1996, Singapore has always been one of the largest partners of Vietnam and the third largest trading partner in ASEAN and the sixth in the world. Bilateral trade turnover in 2016 reached US$7.1 billion.

Vietnam’s export staple items to Singapore include rice, seafood, coffee, pepper, fruit and vegetables, crude oil, transportation vehicles and spare parts but its market share is still at a low level. Vietnam primarily imports from Singapore petroleum products, computers, electronic products and components, and telephones.

Up to September 2017, Singapore continued to be a major investor in Vietnam, ranking third among 126 countries and territories investing in the country, with over 1,927 projects totally capitalized at US$ 41.5 billion. Vietnam has run 65 investment projects in Singapore with a total investment capital of more than US$241 million, ranking 12th out of 68 countries and territories where Vietnam has invested in overseas projects in oil and gas, mining, information technology and services.

Singapore-invested projects’ operations in Vietnam have proved effective, focusing on key areas of regional economic transformation of Vietnam. Seven Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Parks are operating effectively in some provinces of Binh Duong, Bac Ninh, Hai Phong, Quang Ngai, Hai Duong and Nghe An. 

During the Vietnam visit by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in March 2017, the two sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding on establishing the 8th Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park in the central province of Quang Tri.

Over the past years, the relationship between the two law-making bodies of Vietnam and Singapore has seen positive development with regular exchange of high-level parliamentary delegations. In addition to exchanges on legislative work and supervision, members of parliament have made significant contributions to promoting investment and trade ties between the two countries. 

The 14th National Assembly of Vietnam has set up a Vietnam-Singapore Parliamentary Friendship Group headed by Nguyen Hai Hung, Vice Chairman of the NA’s Security Committee.

At multilateral forums, the two sides have maintained fruitful cooperation at the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF), the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum, and the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA).The two parliamentary delegations have had mutual consultations and similar views on dealing with environmental and security issues in the region.