Sri Lanka and Vietnam have agreed to elevate their bilateral relationship to a “Comprehensive Partnership” and to expand trade to US$1 billion by 2030 from the current level of around US$200 million, the two governments announced during President Tô Lâm’s state visit. The partnership upgrade was outlined alongside cooperation in agriculture, food security, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, green growth, education and tourism.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake announced the trade target at a joint press conference with visiting Vietnamese President Tô Lâm on Thursday.
The pledge was the headline outcome of the two-day state visit, which also produced five Memoranda of Understanding signed at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo. The agreements cover police training, science and technology, religious affairs, cultural cooperation, and information and communications.
Public Security Minister Ananda Wijepala signed the police training agreement with Vietnam’s Minister of Public Security, General Luong Tam Quang. Science and Technology Minister Dr. Chrishantha Abeysena signed with his Vietnamese counterpart Prof. Dr. Vu Hai Quan. Religious Affairs and Culture Minister Dr. Hiniduma Sunil Senevi signed two of the agreements, while Deputy Mass Media Minister Dr. Kaushalya Ariyarathne concluded the information and communications MoU.
President Dissanayake said Vietnam had agreed to donate 100 metric tonnes of urea and superphosphate fertiliser to support Sri Lankan agriculture. He also announced that direct flights between Colombo and Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi will officially launch this year, ending the absence of non-stop air connectivity between the two countries.
Vietnamese investors were invited to explore opportunities in renewable energy, logistics, infrastructure, tourism and manufacturing. Mr. Tô Lâm later addressed parliament — the first foreign head of state to do so in 11 years, since Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015 — capping a visit framed around the 55th anniversary of bilateral relations.
The president arrived in Colombo on Wednesday night with a 209-member delegation following a state tour of India. Mr. Tô Lâm and his delegation departed from Bandaranaike International Airport late on Thursday evening, concluding the first state visit to Sri Lanka by a Vietnamese president in 15 years. Industry and Entrepreneurship Development Minister Sunil Handunnetti was at the airport to bid farewell, the President’s Media Division said.
