 |
| At the invitation of Prime Minister Le Minh Hung, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico is on an official visit to Vietnam from April 12-14. (Photo: Thanh Long) |
Prime Minister Hung expressed his delight at welcoming the first international guest in his capacity as Prime Minister, and in the context of the positive development of traditional friendship and multifaceted cooperation between Vietnam and Slovakia.
 |
| The Presidential Palace, where the official welcome ceremony for Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico took place. (Photo: Thanh Long) |
The two Prime Ministers stood on the honour platform to observe the national anthems of both countries. They then reviewed the guard of honour of the Vietnam People’s Army, and introduced their respective high-level delegations.
 |
| Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico ascend the podium as the national anthems of both countries are played. (Photo: Thanh Long) |
 |
| Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico ascend the podium as the national anthems of both countries are played. (Photo: Thanh Long) |
 |
| Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico bow to the Victory Flag. (Photo: Thanh Long) |
 |
| Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and Prime Minister Robert Fico review the honor guard. (Photo: Thanh Long) |
 |
| Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico pose for a photo before commencing talks. (Photo: Thanh Long) |
 |
| An overview of the talks. (Photo: Thanh Long) |
 |
| Prime Minister Le Minh Hung speaks at the talks. (Photo: Thanh Long) |
 |
| Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico speaks at the talks. (Photo: Thanh Long) |
 |
| This marks Prime Minister Fico's third official visit to Vietnam, following his visits in 2008 and 2016 as the Head of the Slovak government. (Photo: Thanh Long) |
Over the past 76 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, Vietnam and Slovakia have maintained and nurtured their traditional friendship, with both sides attaching importance to strengthening ties. High-level visits and exchanges, as well as regular contacts at all levels, have been sustained.
Economic and trade cooperation has continued to grow steadily. Bilateral trade reached 1.73 billion USD in 2024 and rose to 1.78 billion USD in 2025. Slovakia ratified the EU–Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) in February 2023, providing a solid legal framework for investment ties. As of December 2025, Slovakia had 16 valid investment projects in Vietnam with a total registered capital of 140.87 million USD, while Vietnam had one project worth 447,000 USD in Slovakia.
Cooperation in other areas such as security-defence, science-technology, culture-tourism, and labour has also been maintained and gradually expanded. Notably, Slovak citizens have been granted visa-free entry to Vietnam from August 15, 2025 to August 14, 2028.
The Vietnamese community in Slovakia, numbering around 10,000 people, has been officially recognised as the 14th ethnic minority group in the Central European nation, serving as an important bridge in fostering the bilateral friendship.
Building on the solid foundation of traditional friendship, PM Fico’s visit is expected to further strengthen political trust, promote substantive cooperation, and open up new directions for the bilateral relations, contributing to creating fresh momentum to further deepen Vietnam–Slovakia ties in the time to come.
