Hanoi (VNA) – Party General Secretary To Lam’s upcoming state visit to Azerbaijan is expected to further enhance political trust between the two countries and send a clear message that Vietnam remains committed to continuously strengthening its traditional friendship with countries of the former Soviet Union, including Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan is the second stop on Party General Secretary Lam’s official tour, accompanied by his spouse and a high-ranking Vietnamese delegation, to Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Russia, and Belarus from May 5 to 12. His state visit to Azerbaijan on May 7-8 is made at the invitation of President Ilham Aliyev.

This marks the first visit by a Vietnamese Party General Secretary to Azerbaijan since bilateral diplomatic relations were formally established in 1992, and the highest-level delegation exchange between the two countries over the past decade. The visit underscores Vietnam’s enduring commitment to traditional friends, including Azerbaijan, and is expected to elevate bilateral ties to a new height.

Decades-long friendship

Vietnam and Azerbaijan share a long-standing bond, cultivated by President Ho Chi Minh and Azerbaijani President Heydar Aliyev, and strengthened over the decades by successive leaders and their people. Despite the geographic distance, the two nations have maintained deep mutual respect and solidarity, forged through shared historical challenges.

The two countries established their diplomatic relations on September 23, 1992. The Vietnamese Embassy in Russia is concurrently accredited to Azerbaijan, while Azerbaijan opened its embassy in Hanoi in August 2013.

Bilateral ties have been reinforced through consistent high-level exchanges. Key Vietnamese visits to Azerbaijan included those by President Truong Tan Sang (May 2015) and Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh (2019). Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh also met President Ilham Aliyev on the sidelines of the expanded BRICS Leaders’ Summit in Kazan, Russia (October 24, 2024). Most recently, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang visited Azerbaijan for a political consultation in April 2025.

From Azerbaijan, visits to Vietnam included those by President Ilham Aliyev (May 2014), Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov (September 2017), Deputy Foreign Minister Elnur Mammadov (July 2022), and Special Envoy of the President of Azerbaijan Elchin Amirbayov (August 2024). In November 2023, Tahir Budagov, Deputy Chairman of the ruling New Azerbaijan Party, visited Vietnam and signed a cooperation agreement with the Communist Party of Vietnam.

The two countries have also established the Vietnam–Azerbaijan Intergovernmental Committee on Economic, Trade, Scientific and Technical Cooperation. Two meetings have been held so far, most recently in Baku in July 2018.

During the October 2024 meeting in Kazan, Prime Minister Chinh and President Aliyev reaffirmed their commitment to deepening the traditional friendship and enhancing cooperation in energy, agriculture, tourism, and local-level partnerships.

Growing trade-economic cooperation

Economic relations between Vietnam and Azerbaijan have grown notably in recent years. Bilateral trade reached 702.5 million USD in 2022, nearly 250 million USD in 2023, and 52 million USD in 2024. In the first quarter of 2025 alone, trade surpassed 100 million USD, signalling a strong rebound.

Vietnam’s primary exports to Azerbaijan include electronics, mobile phones and components, and seafood. Imports mainly consist of crude oil and petroleum products.

Other areas of cooperation, including defence, science and technology, education, and tourism, are being gradually expanded. Education, once a highlight of bilateral ties during the Soviet era, is regaining momentum, with Vietnamese students currently studying oil and gas, and international relations in Azerbaijan. Negotiations for a bilateral education-training cooperation agreement have recently been concluded.

Energy remains a cornerstone of cooperation. The Vietnam National Industry-Energy Group and Azerbaijan’s state oil company signed a strategic cooperation agreement in 2010. Azerbaijan has been a regular supplier of crude oil to Vietnam’s Dung Quat Refinery. Both sides see substantial potential for developing human resources in the energy sector.

Plans are underway to establish direct commercial and cargo flights to boost tourism and trade. Local-level partnerships, such as that between Ha Giang Province (Vietnam) and Kalbajar region (Azerbaijan), are also being encouraged.

The Vietnamese community in Azerbaijan remains small, mainly students in technical and international studies.

Promoting Vietnam-Azerbaijan traditional friendship, all-round ties

General Secretary Lam’s state visit to Azerbaijan is not only his first to the country but also a major diplomatic milestone, aligned with Vietnam’s foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multilateralism, diversification, and proactive and active global integration as defined by the 13th National Party Congress.

Deputy Minister Le Thi Thu Hang described the visit as a powerful testament to Vietnam’s sincere and loyal relations with traditional friends, aiming for more sustainable, more effective, more substantive, and more mutually beneficial cooperation, matching the potential of the two sides and aspiration of people in both countries. It is expected to promote and further deepen traditional friendship and all-round cooperation with Azerbaijan, she said.

Vietnam’s Ambassador to Russia Dang Minh Khoi, and concurrently accredited to Azerbaijan, noted the special significance of the Party chief's trip to four former Soviet countries - Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Russia, and Belarus. Among them, he highlighted Azerbaijan as a particularly warm and trusted friend of Vietnam, both historically and in the present day.

He added that this is the highest-level Vietnamese visit to Azerbaijan since diplomatic relations began, and that it is expected to strengthen ties, particularly in Azerbaijan’s areas of strength — most notably oil and gas. With Azerbaijan now opening more assertively to international partners, the country could become a strategic gateway for Vietnam’s engagement with Central Asia and Europe. In turn, Vietnam is ready to serve as a bridge for Azerbaijan to enhance its connections with East Asia.

With a strong foundation of friendship and growing mutual interests, the state visit by General Secretary Lam is poised to elevate Vietnam–Azerbaijan relations to new heights - in line with the aspirations and benefit of both nations, for global peace and stability, the diplomat stated./.