Singapore (VNA)♔ – Vietnamese Ambassador to Singapore Tran Phuoc Anh has underscored the significance of Party General Secretary To Lam’s upcoming official visit to Singapore from March 11-13, the first in his new role, as well as the potential of bilateral cooperation as the two countries work toward elevating their partnership to new heights.

Anh described the visit as a new milestone in the bilateral relationship, saying that it comes at a time when the region and the world are experiencing rapid and sweeping changes, and both Vietnam and Singapore are poised to enter a new phase of development, with Vietnam set to embark on the era of the nation's rise. Against this backdrop, enhancing and deepening cooperation between the two nations not only benefit the growth of the two nations but also are crucial to regional peace, stability, cooperation and development. The visit reflects Vietnam’s appreciation for elevating ties with Singapore in line with its foreign policy, aims to further bolster Party-to-Party ties which serve as a solid political foundation for bilateral cooperation, and unlock the full potential of collaboration across green economy, digital economy, sci-tech, innovation, clean energy, and financial centres. Its agenda will also spotlight Vietnam’s policy direction on sci-tech and innovation, in accordance with the Politburo’s Resolution 57-NQ/TW, dated December 22, 2024; and facilitate knowledge sharing and promotion of investment from Singapore in areas of Vietnam’s interest, he added. "This visit will not only reaffirm the strong commitment of both sides to developing their current strategic partnership but also open up numerous new opportunities for cooperation, contributing to the prosperity and sustainable development of the two countries," he stressed. The ambassador also noted that there remains ample room for bilateral cooperation. To fully tap the potential, he proposed elevating traditional cooperation sectors such as trade-investment, security-defence, culture-education, and people-to-people exchange, and striving to achieve new milestones, thus deepening the relationship. It is necessary to develop new, strategically important fields such as digital transformation, innovation, new technologies, clean energy, major iconic projects such as Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park (VSIP), offshore wind energy, data centres, and international financial centres in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang, stated Anh. He also highlighted the need to strengthen the connectivity between the two economies and with the region in logistics, aviation, seaports, data, and people-to-people exchange. Given that both countries have implemented many student exchange and scholarship programmes, and training cooperation between universities, the diplomat suggested Singapore help Vietnam train high-quality specialised human resources, especially in the fields of management, technology, and finance. Regarding Party-to-Party cooperation, Anh affirmed that it plays an important role in enhancing political relations and promoting cooperation in other areas. The relationship between the Communist Party of Vietnam and the People's Action Party of Singapore continues to be strengthened, thus reinforcing the political foundation and providing active support for bilateral collaboration, he said, adding that the two sides have maintained high-level delegation exchanges, while sharing experience in national governance and party building, and setting cooperation directions in strategic areas. In general, bilateral cooperation is developing in an increasingly broad and deep manner, contributing to enhancing their relationship in the region and the world, stressed the ambassador. The diplomat highlighted the importance of upgrading bilateral relations, saying that it will mark the beginning of a new cooperation period. The key lies in how the new partnership is implemented to deliver tangible benefits for the people of both countries, he said. Anh stressed that both sides should invest adequate resources - time, personnel, funding, and technology - in key programmes, projects, and sectors, especially offshore wind energy projects between the Petrovietnam Technical Services Corporation (PTSC) and Sembcorp Utility; upgrade VSIPs; and promoting cooperation in low-carbon finance, and data centre development. The two sides should also coordinate their positions on regional and international issues, particularly within ASEAN and other multilateral forums, to promote peace, stability, and sustainable development in the region, towards turning the Vietnam-Singapore relationship into a model for bilateral cooperation, especially in economy, further strengthening intra-bloc solidarity, the ambassador noted./.