The State visit to Vietnam by President José Ramos-Horta is expected to bring the Vietnam-Timor-Leste bilateral relationship to a new height.
At the invitation of President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam To Lam, President of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste José Ramos-Horta will pay a State visit to Vietnam from July 31 to August 3, 2024.
The State visit to Vietnam by President José Ramos-Horta is expected to bring the Vietnam-Timor-Leste bilateral relationship to a new height.
Longstanding friendship
Vietnam and Timor-Leste have a long-standing friendly relationship. Vietnam was one of the first countries to recognize the Revolutionary Front for an Independent Timor-Leste (FRETILIN) (September 1975).
Recently, the relationship between the two countries has developed. Notably, there were visits to Vietnam by President Jose Ramos-Horta (April 2010); Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao (September 2013); Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Hernani Coelho (April 2016); Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Mr. Dionisio Babo Soares attended APEC (September 2018) and paid an official visit (June 2019).
On the Vietnamese side, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Manh Cam attended the Independence Declaration Ceremony (May 2002); Minister of Education Pham Vu Luan paid an official visit to Timor-Leste (January 2015); Special Envoy of the Prime Minister and Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung attended the 20th anniversary of Timor-Leste's independence referendum (August 2019).
Timor-Leste officially opened its embassy in Hanoi in April 2012. The new ambassador of Timor-Leste presented his credentials on June 18, 2024. The Vietnamese Embassy in Indonesia concurrently serves Timor-Leste. Ambassador Ta Van Thong presented his credentials in October 2022.
The Communist Party of Vietnam has not had official relations with any political party in Timor-Leste, but has met with two major parties: the Revolutionary Front for an Independent Timor-Leste (FRETILIN) and the Timor-Leste National Congress for Reconstruction (CNRT). During the meetings, the leaders of both parties expressed their desire to consult and learn from the experience of the Communist Party of Vietnam.
The two countries signed a Framework Agreement on Technical and Economic Cooperation (April 2010), in which the two sides agreed to establish a Joint Commission mechanism (but it has not been implemented due to Timor-Leste's failure to make arrangements).
Economic-trade-investment cooperation
In recent years, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the import-export turnover between the two countries has tended to decrease: in 2020 it reached 53.9 million USD, in 2021 it reached 33.5 million USD, in 2022 it reached 17.6 million USD; in 2023 it reached 15.9 million USD (export: 15.5 million USD, import: 371,700 USD); trade exchange in recent years has been one-way, mainly Vietnam exported to Timor-Leste (rice accounted for more than 90%, the rest were consumer goods and processed foods).
Timor-Leste and Vietnam have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Rice Trade. In 2023, Vietnam exported 15,320 tons of rice to Timor-Leste, worth nearly 8.8 million USD. As of April 2024, Vietnam exported 3,866 tons of rice to Timor-Leste, worth nearly 2.6 million USD.
Vietnam Military Telecommunications Group (Viettel) currently has an investment project to provide telecommunications services in Timor-Leste (under the name Telemor, established on August 22, 2012, officially providing services from July 10, 2013), with an initial investment capital of 500,000 USD, then gradually increasing to 10 million USD.
After 10 years of development, Telemor has contributed to changing the telecommunications industry in Timor-Leste, contributing to the development of this country. In 2023, Telemor's service revenue reached 44.5 million USD, a growth rate of 17.4% compared to 2022 (2023 profit reached about 14 million USD, the highest ever) and became the best telecommunications service provider in Timor-Leste.
Telemor also participates in many social programs (blood donation, environmental protection...). Telemor's achievements and contributions have been recognized by the Government of Timor-Leste and awarded a certificate of merit for the development of the telecommunications industry in Timor-Leste.
Telemor was voted “Fastest Growing Business of the Year in Asia, Australia and New Zealand” at the 2015 International Business Awards by the Stevie Awards (USA), and won the prestigious IT World Awards 2022 for the Kakoak digital application invested and developed by Telemor in Timor-Leste.
Cooperation in other areas
The two countries have potential for cooperation in the fields of agriculture, oil and gas, fisheries, infrastructure construction; exchange of agricultural products, textiles, consumer goods, industrial machinery, electrical equipment, education, culture, tourism... However, cooperation between the two countries is still limited.
In 2014, Timor-Leste's Deputy Minister of Education visited Vietnam to learn about Vietnam's new school model. During the visit to Timor-Leste by Minister of Education and Training Pham Vu Luan (2015), the two countries' Ministries of Education agreed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding to create a basis for enhancing cooperation activities between the two countries.
There are currently about 40 Timor-Leste students studying in Vietnam, mostly at Thai Nguyen University (39 students) and at Hanoi National University (01 student).
Regarding multilateral cooperation, the two sides agreed to continue to strengthen cooperation and coordinate their positions at regional and international forums. Timor-Leste affirmed its support for Vietnam to become a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for the 2020-2021 term.
Vietnam will continue to work with ASEAN countries and the ASEAN Secretariat to support Timor-Leste in the process of preparation and capacity building, creating favorable conditions for Timor-Leste to officially join ASEAN.
Promoting Vietnam-Timor-Leste relations
On May 11, 2023, on the occasion of attending the 42nd Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Labuan Bajo, Indonesia, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met with Timor Leste Prime Minister Taur Matan.
At the meeting, the two sides agreed to promote the exchange of delegations at all levels and effectively implement signed agreements; acknowledged that there is still much potential for cooperation, especially in trade and investment, and agreed to create favorable conditions for businesses of the two countries to do business and operate effectively in each other's markets.
The two Prime Ministers also agreed to promote cooperation in culture, tourism, education, and people-to-people exchange to increase connectivity; expand to new areas such as digital transformation, green growth, and circular economy.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh asked Timor-Leste to facilitate Vietnamese businesses doing business in Timor Leste by resolving legal issues; promptly ratifying the Bilateral Trade Agreement signed in 2013; and effectively implementing the Memorandum of Understanding on Rice Trade signed in 2015.
Timor-Leste Prime Minister Taur Matan affirmed that Vietnam is a great friend, respects and wishes to strengthen cooperation with Vietnam; and announced that President Jose Ramos-Horta wishes to visit Vietnam soon.
The Prime Minister of Timor-Leste highly appreciated Vietnam's impressive socio-economic development achievements; expressed his delight at witnessing the increasingly effective and substantive development of cooperation between the two countries, especially in the fields of telecommunications and education. Prime Minister Taur Matan respectfully invited Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh to visit Timor Leste. Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh also respectfully invited the Prime Minister of Timor-Leste to visit Vietnam at a convenient time./.
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