Talks at the Kremlin took center stage during Vietnamese leader To Lam’s visit to Moscow, which began on Monday, with relations between Russia and Vietnam at the heart of the agenda. The Vietnamese president and general secretary of the Communist Party met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said before the meeting that the talks were expected to be held at a high level and cover a broad range of issues.
Vietnamese Deputy Foreign Minister Le Thi Thu Hang had previously announced that Hanoi expected progress in cooperation with Russia in the fields of oil, natural gas and nuclear energy.
Video link for laboratory opening
To Lam and Putin are scheduled to hold a joint press conference after the talks between Vietnamese and Russian officials. The leaders are also expected to preside over the official opening, via video link, of a joint infectious disease research laboratory established by the two countries.
To Lam visited Moscow in May 2025, attended the Victory Day parade on Red Square and signed a strategic partnership agreement with Russia.
To Lam’s Moscow program
As part of his three-day state visit, the Vietnamese leader also met with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev and Federation Council Chairwoman Valentina Matviyenko.
The program also included meetings with Gennady Zyuganov, chairman of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, Russian war veterans and representatives of the Vietnamese diaspora in Moscow. During a meeting at the embassy, To Lam emphasized Vietnam’s transformation toward diversifying its international integration.
Russia remains Vietnam’s largest arms supplier. The two countries also cooperate on nuclear energy and natural gas projects in the South China Sea. Some of these projects are located in waters also claimed by China. Hanoi, meanwhile, is seeking to diversify its military procurement sources.
