Vietnam–Panama ties enter a new stage of substantive and effective cooperation: Deputy FM Dang Hoang Giang
WVR - The World and Vietnam Report is pleased to present an interview with Deputy Foreign Minister Dang Hoang Giang following the official visit to Vietnam by Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino Quintero and his spouse.
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| Deputy Foreign Minister Dang Hoang Giang. (Photo: Bao Chi) |
Could you share the most significant highlights and outcomes of the recent visit by the President of Panama?
At the invitation of General Secretary, President To Lam and his spouse, President of the Republic of Panama José Raúl Mulino Quintero and his spouse paid an official visit to Vietnam from October 5-8, 2026.
This is the highest-level visit from Panama in 14 years and also the first visit by a Latin American Head of State to Vietnam after our Party successfully organized the 14th National Party Congress and the election of the 16th National Assembly and People's Councils at all levels for the 2026-2031 term.
The visit marks a new phase in the development of the friendly and cooperative relationship between Vietnam and Panama, serving the interests of the peoples of both countries and contributing to peace, stability, cooperation, and development in both regions and globally.
In a spirit of friendship and sincerity, the highly successful talks between General Secretary, President To Lam and President José Raúl Mulino, along with high-level meetings between the leaders of the two countries, have agreed on strategic directions to elevate bilateral relations to a new phase of substantive, effective, comprehensive, and sustainable development.
The message is clearly perceived that Vietnam values Panama's position and role in the Latin American region, and conversely, Panama also places special importance on Vietnam's role and position in Southeast Asia. The high-level joint statement between the two countries reflects the political will, strategic vision, and strong commitment of both nations to further deepen the traditional friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and Panama, laying the foundation and direction for the new development phase of each side.
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| General Secretary, President To Lam and his spouse host the official welcoming ceremony for the President of Panama and his spouse. (Photo: Nguyen Hong) |
Additionally, the visit has created a significant breakthrough in the institutional and legal framework for bilateral cooperation, turning commitments into action through the signing of 10 important cooperation documents in areas such as security, agriculture, transportation, customs, tourism, training, and trade. This creates greater values that align with national interests and sustainable development goals across all fields where both sides have strengths, potential, and cooperation needs.
The visit has also introduced a new mindset on cooperation, where the two countries not only engage in traditional goods exchange but also recognize the potential and strategic logistics connectivity of Panama on an international scale, with its maritime, aviation infrastructure, financial-banking centers, and especially the Panama Canal, linking Vietnam more closely and stably with the Latin American-Caribbean market and supply chain.
Within the framework of the visit, businesses from both countries had the opportunity to exchange, explore, and cooperate to build a strong connection between the business communities of the two nations. The Vietnam-Panama Business Forum attracted significant interest and participation from the business communities of both countries. Through the Forum, Vietnam and Panama jointly conveyed a strong message about the policies and measures of both governments to improve the investment environment, open markets, and create the most favorable conditions for investors.
So, Deputy Minister, to quickly bring these commitments and positive outcomes to life, what will both sides focus on implementing in the near future?
The issue now is action, how to realize the vision of the high-level leaders into cooperative results, specific projects, and benefits for the people and businesses of both countries.
Accordingly, with the principle of measuring success by tangible results and aiming at the interests of the peoples of both countries, we need to fully inform relevant ministries, departments, localities, businesses, and the public about the significant outcomes achieved during the visit, especially the enhancement of substantive cooperation between the two sides. Based on this, ministries, sectors, localities, organizations, and businesses should develop implementation plans, action plans, or specific measures to leverage and promote the cooperation potential between the two countries in each field.
At the same time, the two countries will continue to maintain and deepen political trust through high-level and various-level exchanges, cooperation mechanisms across Party, State, Parliamentary, and people-to-people channels, providing a solid foundation for ministries, sectors, localities, and businesses of both countries to continue realizing cooperation opportunities and potential.
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| The spouse of General Secretary, President To Lam and the spouse of the President of Panama explore the cultures of Vietnamese ethnic groups. |
Both sides also need to expand the cooperation space to new practical fields where both have strengths and demands. We should not only cooperate well in traditional areas but also immediately concretize the newly signed agreements into fields where Panama has outstanding strengths and Vietnam has significant needs, such as port services, agriculture, infrastructure, transportation, finance-banking, education-training, and tourism... thereby creating specific resources for the new development phase of each country.
In terms of economy and trade, based on the institutional and legal framework signed during the visit, the Vietnamese business community needs to actively and proactively seize opportunities to access the market and economic opportunities in Latin America. Conversely, Vietnam is ready to support Panama in accessing opportunities in the ASEAN market.
On a multilateral level, Vietnam and Panama will continue to closely coordinate and support each other at major multilateral forums and international organizations, particularly at the United Nations. Both countries share views on independence, freedom, sovereignty, respect for international law, and the protection of multilateralism with a common vision for peace, cooperation, and development. Therefore, coordination at global forums will continue to enhance the prestige and position of each country, contributing practically to peace, stability, and development in both regions and globally.
The official visit to Vietnam by President of Panama José Raúl Mulino was a great success, achieving numerous significant outcomes. I believe the new momentum from the visit will have a powerful impact in creating important foundations for the development of the country and advancing the multifaceted friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and Panama into a new, more substantive, effective, and sustainable phase.
