The prime minister’s visit comes before the start of the 3rd Russia-ASEAN summit in Sochi will take place on May 19 to 20 in Sochi, Russia. The event marks the 20th anniversary of relations between Russia and ASEAN. This trip is expected to promote ties between the two countries in the new period.
Vietnam is the only country in South East Asia to have strategic partnership relations with Russia. It’s also the the largest trading partner of Russia in the region. This shows that Vietnam has an important position in Russia's policies in the South Eest Asia region and the Russia-Vietnam relations have made a considerable contribution to peace and security in the Asia-Pacific region. With the official visit, beside political issues, talks are expected to focus more on promoting the development of economic and trade co-operation.
"The visit of the prime minister to Russia and Russia-ASEAN summit has two significant meanings. It’s the bilateral relationship that needs to be enhanced as a comprehensive strategic partnership. Secondly, the fact that Russia can promote its relations with the ASEAN region through Vietnam is also important." - Nguyen Thanh Son, Vietnamese Ambassador to Russia.
Vietnamese and Russian experts have discussed the prospects for Russia-Vietnam relations in the coming period at a conference that recently took place on May 13 in Moscow. According to experts, the prime minster’s visit to Russia and the ASEAN-Russia summit in Sochi, Russia will create better conditions to promote relations between Russia and Southeast Asia.
"Vietnam took an important role in Russia's strategy in South East Asia and the wider Asian region. The relationship was built based on history, economics, politics, military ties, relations and trust. I believe that the relationship is very special. There is no other country in Asia that has such a friendly and trusting relationship with Russia." - Dmitry Mosyakov, Director, Centre for South-East Asia, Australia and Oceania Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences.
"Vietnam is considered as the link between Russia and South East Asia. The importance of Vietnam to Russia has been defined by interests of the comprehensive strategic partnership. However, it is not commensurate with its potential. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc’s visit to Russia is a chance to promote co-operation between the two countries at higher level." - Grigory Lokshin, Senior Specialist, Institute of Far Eastern Studies. Russian Academy of Sciences.
On May 1, 2016, President Putin officially ratified the Free Trade Agreement between the Eurasian Economic Union and Vietnam. With the new agreement, bilateral import-export turnover is expected to reach USD 10-12 billion by 2020, a surge from USD 4 billion in 2014. The 3rd ASEAN-Russia summit in Sochi will promote co-operation between Russia and Vietnam, the ASEAN region and even with the Asia-Pacific region.
