Vietnam Party leader congratulates President Putin over re-election

Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong on Monday sent a congratulatory letter to Vladimir Putin over his re-election as president of Russia.

According to the data from the Central Election Commission of Russia, preliminary counting results as of Tuesday morning show that President Vladimir Putin won 87.32% of the vote, securing his fifth term and will lead Russia until 2030.

On behalf of the Party and the State of Vietnam, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong sent a congratulatory letter to President Putin, according to a statement from the Central Foreign Affairs Commission. In 2018, when Putin was reelected as the President of Russia, General Secretary Trong also sent a congratulatory message.

Leaders from several countries like China, North Korea, and Cuba have also congratulated President Putin on his reelection.

Putin, 71, was Russia’s president from 2000 to 2008 and has held the position since 2012, as well as serving as the country’s prime minister from 2008 to 2012.

He was elected president in 2012 and 2018 with 63.6% and 76.69% of the votes.

Vietnam and Russia established diplomatic relations in 1950. The two countries celebrated 10 years of Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2022.

According to data from the Ministry of Planning and Investment, by the end of 2022, Russia had 164 projects in Vietnam with a total investment of US$965.8 million, ranking 27th among 140 countries and territories.

Vietnam has invested in five projects in Russia with a total value of US$528 million in the industrial and manufacturing sectors.

According to the General Department of Customs, the bilateral trade in 2022 reached US$3.55 billion.

In 2023, Russia provided 1,000 scholarships for Vietnamese students. Currently, there are about 5,000 Vietnamese students studying in this country.

The Chairman of the United Russia party, Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev, officially visited Vietnam in May 2023, affirming that Vietnam is an important partner of Russia, emphasizing that developing relations with Vietnam is one of Russia’s top priorities.

During his visit to Vietnam in October last year, the Chairman of the State Duma of Russia Vyacheslav Vichtorovich Volodin also emphasized that Russia always supports promoting the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with Vietnam and considers Vietnam a priority, important partner in its foreign policy in the Asia-Pacific region.

By Huyen Le – VnExpress.net – March 18, 2024