Foreign Minister looks back on 50 years of Việt Nam-Argentina ties

With Argentina being Việt Nam's third largest trade partner in Latin America and Việt Nam ranking as Argentina's fifth largest export market, there remains huge potential to expand cooperation and business activities to boost two-way trade beyond the US$4.8 billion recorded in 2022.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn has penned an article looking back on the half-century cooperation and development toward the future between Việt Nam and Argentina, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties.

Sơn wrote that starting from the 1970s when Việt Nam was in the midst of the arduous struggle for independence and reunification, the country received tremendous solidarity, support and encouragement from Argentina, a South American nation with progressive ideals and a commitment to building a peaceful world without war.

On the basis of the shared aspirations for independence, democracy, freedom and the well-being of their people, the two governments officially established diplomatic relations on October 25, 1973, marking a significant milestone in the bilateral relationship and making Argentina one of the first three countries in the Latin America to establish diplomatic ties with Việt Nam.

Alongside the inauguration of the Vietnamese Embassy in Argentina in 1995 and the Argentine Embassy in Việt Nam in 1997, both sides have kept striving to create opportunities for bilateral cooperation and raise mutual understanding. Via sharing values, independence tradition, common development goals and aspiration to promote peace, cooperation and development, the two nations have nurtured a friendly and fruitful relationship over the past five decades, marked by significant milestones and outcomes.

He said through the ups and downs of history, both countries have been steadfast partners in the process of national construction and development. After nearly four decades of pursuing renewal policy, Việt Nam has achieved significant and comprehensive accomplishments, continually elevating its global and regional standing, as Party General Secretary Nguyễn Phú Trọng said: "Never has our country had such fortune, potential, international standing and prestige as it does today.”

The minister expressed his delight that the two countries have been working together to build and develop their political and diplomatic ties on the foundation of a strong and friendly solidarity, evidenced by high-level visits, including those by Argentine President Mauricio Macri in February 2019 and National Assembly Chairman Vương Đình Huệ in April 2023.

The historic visit by the top Vietnamese legislator after 18 years marked a new milestone in bilateral relationship, particularly as both countries are celebrating the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties and the 13th anniversary of comprehensive partnership, reaffirming Việt Nam's high regard for Argentina as one of its top strategic partners in Latin America and expressing its wish for a substantive and effective collaboration, with breakthrough steps towards the establishment of a strategic partnership framework in various sectors in the near future.

During the global outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020-2022, both countries supported each other by providing 500,000 doses of vaccines from Argentina and 20,000 masks from Việt Nam.

Apart from cooperation mechanisms such as political consultations between the two foreign ministries, the Inter-Governmental Committee on Economic, Trade, and Investment Cooperation, and parliamentary cooperation, the two countries have been working closely and effectively at various multilateral forums and international organisations, such as the United Nations, the Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation (FEALAC), and the South-South cooperation.

The two sides agreed that territorial and sovereignty disputes should be resolved through peaceful means in accordance with international law.

Economically, with Argentina being Việt Nam's third largest trade partner in Latin America and Việt Nam ranking as Argentina's fifth largest export market, there remains huge potential to expand cooperation and business activities to boost two-way trade beyond the US$4.8 billion recorded in 2022. The aim is to initiate negotiations on the Việt Nam-Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR) Free Trade Agreement soon.

With the determination of leaders and the support of the two countries’ people, Sơn expressed his full confidence that both sides will uphold the long-standing spirit of solidarity and the sacred values in the national development, they will together write even more meaningful chapters in the bilateral relationship.