President Vo Van Thuong and his wife are about to visit Austria, Italy and the Vatican.

According to the announcement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs , President Vo Van Thuong and his wife will pay an official visit to the Republic of Austria, a state visit to the Republic of Italy and a visit to the Vatican from July 23-28.

Chủ tịch nước Võ Văn Thưởng và Phu nhân sắp thăm Áo, Italy và Tòa thánh Vatican

President Vo Van Thuong and his wife will pay an official visit to three European countries from July 23-28.

At the invitation of Austrian President Alexander Van der Belle, Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Pope Francis, President Vo Van Thuong and his wife will pay an official visit to the Republic of Austria, a state visit to the Republic of Italy and a visit to the Vatican from July 23-28.

Republic of Austria

The Republic of Austria was one of the first Western countries to establish diplomatic relations with Vietnam in 1972.

Bilateral trade between the two countries has developed positively in recent years, especially in the past two years. In 2021, two-way trade turnover between the two countries reached 3.35 billion USD, up 5.5% compared to 2020. In 2022, two-way trade turnover reached 2.79 billion USD, down 16.7% compared to 2021 due to the impact of the pandemic.

The items we export to Austria are phones of all kinds and components, shoes, wood and wood products, textiles, garments, machinery, equipment, other spare parts... and import from Austria pharmaceuticals, machinery, equipment, iron and steel and iron and steel products, paper, animal feed and raw materials.

The Vietnamese community in Austria currently has about 6,000 people, formed after 1975 and developed in the 1990s. In general, the Vietnamese community in Austria focuses on business, works hard, does not violate the laws of the host country and is highly appreciated by the local government.

Republic of Italy

Vietnam and Italy established diplomatic relations in 1973. Since establishing the Strategic Partnership in January 2013, the two countries have actively promoted practical and effective cooperation in all areas: politics , diplomacy, economics, science, education, defense - security, environmental protection, and local connectivity.

Vietnam is one of the 10 emerging markets in Italy's priority for developing trade and investment relations until 2030. The two sides always create favorable conditions for businesses of the two countries to strengthen cooperation in areas where Italy has strengths and Vietnam has needs, such as: mechanical engineering, infrastructure, textiles, footwear, wood processing, supporting industries, construction materials, oil and gas, renewable energy, food processing...

In 2022, two-way trade turnover will reach more than 6.2 billion USD, an increase of 11% compared to 2021, expected to reach 7-8 billion/year. Italy is Vietnam's third largest trading partner in the EU (after Germany and the Netherlands) and Vietnam is Italy's largest trading partner in ASEAN.

There are currently about 5,000 Vietnamese people living and working in Italy.

Vatican

Vietnam and the Vatican have not yet established official diplomatic relations. In November 2008, the two sides agreed to establish a Joint Working Group on Vietnam-Vatican relations, which meets annually and alternates in Vietnam and the Vatican. To date, the two sides have held 10 rounds of meetings.

Last March, Deputy Foreign Minister Le Thi Thu Hang visited the Vatican to discuss bilateral relations and issues related to the Catholic Church in Vietnam. The two sides assessed that Vietnam-Vatican relations have made much progress, including regular contacts and consultations, exchanges of high-level delegations, and regular pastoral visits by the non-resident representative and special envoy of the Vatican, Archbishop Marek Zalewski.

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