The elevation of bilateral ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during European Council President Antonio Costa’s January visit to Vietnam has opened up new room for cooperation, particularly in science-technology and innovation, Deputy Prime Minister Ho Quoc Dung told visiting European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation Ekaterina Zaharieva on May 26.

Deputy Prime Minister Ho Quoc Dung (right) and European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation Ekaterina Zaharieva at their meeting on May 26, 2026.

The Deputy PM welcomed Zaharieva and the EU delegation to Vietnam at a time when Vietnam-EU relations are developing positively, comprehensively and intensively across multiple areas.

He highly valued the preparations by the EU and Vietnam’s Ministry of Science and Technology to sign a Letter of Intent on strengthening cooperation in science-technology and innovation, describing it as an important step to materialise bilateral cooperation commitments while laying a foundation for stronger links between Vietnam’s research community, businesses and innovation ecosystem and the EU’s large-scale cooperation programmes.

Highlighting the remarkable achievements in Vietnam-EU relations after more than 35 years of diplomatic ties, the Deputy PM affirmed that the EU is currently one of Vietnam’s leading partners, its fourth-largest trading partner and fifth-largest investor, while Vietnam remains the EU’s largest trading partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The two sides have maintained effective dialogue mechanisms, delegation exchanges and high-level contacts, thereby helping consolidate political trust and expand substantive cooperation across various fields.

Dung noted that Vietnam and the EU hold great complementary potential for joint development, especially as Vietnam is emerging as one of dynamic growth economies in the region and the world, boasting a young and high-quality workforce along with a developing innovation ecosystem.

Vietnam always values the EU’s role and position as one of the world’s leading centres for science, technology and innovation, pioneering in such fields as digital transformation, artificial intelligence, green economy, circular economy, renewable energy and sustainable development.

For her part, Zaharieva highly appreciated the cooperation potential between the two sides in research and innovation.

She stressed that the EU is currently one of the world’s leading hubs for investment in research and development, with many large-scale programmes promoting science-technology and innovation, adding that the bloc is implementing cooperation programmes and plans to significantly increase investment in this field in the coming period.

According to Zaharieva, the signing of the Letter of Intent with Vietnam’s Ministry of Science and Technology will facilitate broader participation by Vietnamese research institutions, universities and enterprises in Horizon Europe, the EU’s flagship research and innovation programme.

She expressed confidence that the growing presence of European businesses in Vietnam will help accelerate advanced technology transfer, support infrastructure development and enhance Vietnam’s innovation capacity.

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