President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Tô Lâm arrived at Bandaranaike International Airport on Wednesday night to begin a two-day state visit at the invitation of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.
Mr. Tô Lâm and his delegation flew in on Vietnam Airlines flight VN-1 from Mumbai, having concluded a tour of India earlier in the day. He was received at Katunayake by Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya, Environment Minister Dr. Dammika Patabendi, Deputy Foreign Affairs and Foreign Employment Minister Arun Hemachandra and senior officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. A delegation of 209 is travelling with the Vietnamese President, including senior cabinet ministers and Communist Party Secretariat members.
The arrival opens the visit programme previously approved by Cabinet, which features a formal welcome ceremony at the Presidential Secretariat, bilateral discussions and the signing of several Memoranda of Understanding on Friday. The two presidents will also issue a joint media statement, after which Mr. Tô Lâm will pay floral tribute at the Ho Chi Minh statue at the Colombo Public Library and visit the Vietnam–Ho Chi Minh Space inside the library complex. He is scheduled to address the Sri Lankan Parliament later in the day.
The President’s Media Division said the visit is the first by a Vietnamese President to Sri Lanka in 15 years and marks the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The trip was scheduled at the invitation extended by Mr. Dissanayake during his own state visit to Vietnam in 2025. Sri Lanka has signalled the talks will be aimed at supporting its industrialisation drive and helping local firms access wider foreign markets through Vietnamese supply chains.
Vietnam is one of the world’s fastest-growing economies and a major manufacturing hub. Bilateral trade currently exceeds US$200 million annually, with direct Colombo–Hanoi and Colombo–Ho Chi Minh City flights on the agenda alongside investment cooperation.
