Hanoi, October 9, 2025 – The Europe Today: Deputy Prime Minister Bùi Thanh Sơn on Thursday signed a decision establishing the Vietnam Sub-Committee under the Joint Committee of the Vietnam–Cuba Trade Agreement, marking another step forward in strengthening institutional cooperation between the two nations.
According to the decision, the sub-committee will be chaired by a Vice Minister of Industry and Trade, with a division-level official from the Government Office serving as Secretary.
Its standing members will comprise department-level representatives from the Ministries of Industry and Trade, Foreign Affairs, Construction, Finance, Agriculture and Rural Development, Natural Resources and Environment, Science and Technology, as well as the State Bank of Vietnam.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) will serve as the standing body of the sub-committee, which will be headquartered at the ministry. Specific working groups and sub-groups may be formed as necessary, based on the operational requirements of the Joint Committee.
Under the decision, members will perform their duties concurrently with their existing positions and will bear personal responsibility for fulfilling assigned tasks in accordance with the Prime Minister’s regulations on the establishment and functioning of Vietnam’s sub-committees within intergovernmental mechanisms.
The sub-committee chair has also been authorized to use the official seal of the Ministry of Industry and Trade for administrative purposes.
The establishment of the Vietnam Sub-Committee reflects both nations’ commitment to enhancing the effectiveness of the Vietnam–Cuba Trade Agreement, first signed in 2018, which serves as a cornerstone for bilateral economic cooperation.
Over the past decades, Vietnam and Cuba have maintained a strong and enduring partnership, with bilateral trade consistently exceeding US$100 million annually. Vietnam currently stands as Cuba’s second-largest trading partner in Asia.
In 2024, two-way trade reached US$134.7 million, with Vietnam’s exports surging 184.3 percent to US$133.36 million, while imports totaled US$1.33 million.
Vietnam’s key exports to Cuba include rice, electronics, apparel, footwear, cosmetics, construction materials, household goods, stationery, fertilizers, and medical equipment. Rice remains a strategic export, playing a vital role in supporting Cuba’s food security, while demand for construction materials such as cement and steel, along with apparel, continues to grow.
Conversely, Cuba’s exports to Vietnam include pharmaceuticals, vaccines, activated carbon, and rum, reflecting the Caribbean nation’s advanced biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors, whose products have been widely adopted in the Vietnamese market.
Vietnam also ranks as Cuba’s largest Asian investor, with five major investment projects, including the first-ever time-bound concession granted to a wholly Vietnamese-owned enterprise in Cuba.
The establishment of the Vietnam Sub-Committee is expected to further facilitate trade, investment, and economic cooperation, ensuring the smooth implementation of the Vietnam–Cuba Trade Agreement and reinforcing the long-standing friendship between the two nations.
