Hanoi, March 19, 2025 – The Europe Today: Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính hosted a reception for Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó in Hanoi on Wednesday, reaffirming Vietnam’s commitment to enhancing ties with Hungary, its first comprehensive partner in Central and Eastern Europe.
During the meeting, Prime Minister Chính recognized Hungary as a steadfast friend that has provided valuable support to Vietnam over the past 75 years. He expressed satisfaction with the robust growth of trade and investment ties between the two nations despite global and regional uncertainties. He also welcomed ongoing preparations for the 10th session of the Vietnam-Hungary Joint Committee for Economic Cooperation, scheduled to be held in Hanoi later this year. This will be the first such meeting since 2019 and is expected to further promote bilateral trade and investment.
Minister Szijjártó, on an official visit to Vietnam from March 18-19, praised the country’s socio-economic achievements and reaffirmed Hungary’s commitment to strengthening its traditional friendship and multi-faceted cooperation with Vietnam, which it considers a key partner in the region.
The two sides discussed measures to enhance collaboration in education, engineering, electronics, tourism, labour, and rail connectivity between Southeast Asia and Central Eastern Europe.
A notable focus of the discussions was Vietnam’s urgent need for Hungarian assistance in training high-quality human resources for nuclear power plant operations. Given Hungary’s extensive experience in operating nuclear power plants using Russian technology, Minister Szijjártó affirmed Hungary’s readiness to train 1,000 Vietnamese specialists in the field. This cooperation aligns with Vietnam’s recent decision to revive the Ninh Thuận nuclear power project, with the goal of operationalizing the plants by 2030.
Both parties also agreed to review the legal framework governing bilateral cooperation and accelerate negotiations on agreements related to citizen repatriation and labour collaboration.
On international and regional matters, the two leaders acknowledged similarities in their foreign policies and underscored the need to strengthen cooperation at multilateral forums. They reaffirmed their commitment to peace, cooperation, and development as prevailing global trends and emphasized that disputes should be settled peacefully based on international law.
Prime Minister Chính called on Hungary, as an EU member, to encourage the remaining EU countries to ratify the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) and advocate for the early removal of the European Commission’s “yellow card” warning on Vietnamese seafood exports.
Regarding the Vietnamese community in Hungary, Minister Szijjártó commended their hard work, intelligence, and successful integration into Hungarian society, recognizing their positive contributions to fostering bilateral relations.
On this occasion, Prime Minister Chính extended an invitation to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to pay an official visit to Vietnam in the near future.
