Lumen Vietnam Fund

Blog

Việt Nam regards EAEU as trustworthy partner in AI development

Việt Nam regards EAEU as trustworthy partner in AI development

Deputy PM Hồ Quốc Dũng suggested Việt Nam and the EAEU establish a policy dialogue forum on the responsible use of AI, data protection standards and cybersecurity.

ASTANA — Việt Nam considers the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) a trustworthy partner in the development of artificial intelligence (AI) for mutual benefit, Deputy Prime Minister Hồ Quốc Dũng affirmed at the plenary session of the Eurasian Economic Forum held in Astana, Kazakhstan, on Thursday.

In his remarks, Dũng highlighted several of Việt Nam’s achievements in science – technology, innovation, e-government and the digital economy while sharing the country’s approach to AI development. He stressed that Việt Nam identifies science – technology, innovation and digital transformation as foundational drivers and strategic breakthroughs for entering a new era of development.

The Deputy PM also outlined several major directions for advancing the implementation of the free trade agreement (FTA) between Việt Nam and the EAEU amid emerging regional trends such as the digital economy and AI, alongside efforts to promote transcontinental transport corridors and the digitalisation of cross-border trade.

Dũng stressed that the existing agreement between Việt Nam and the bloc provides a solid basis for bilateral economic cooperation. In the current context, they should expand collaboration to new technological areas, including AI research and development covering smart agriculture, urban planning and transport, as well as stronger cooperation between research centres and educational institutions in training personnel in cybernetics and computer science.

The Deputy PM suggested the parties establish a policy dialogue forum on the responsible use of AI, data protection standards and cybersecurity.

On the same day, he held meetings with Chairman of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) Bakytzhan Sagintayev, Deputy PM of Belarus Natalya Petkevich, and Vice President of Cuba Salvador Valdes Mesa.

Meeting with Sagintayev, Dũng affirmed Việt Nam’s commitment to cooperation with the EAEU and praised the practical benefits delivered by the EAEU – Việt Nam FTA to businesses and people on both sides over the past decade. He proposed a review of the agreement’s 10-year implementation to identify areas requiring improvement, including the removal of safeguard measures affecting Vietnamese fishery and apparel exports.

The EEC Chairman described the FTA with Việt Nam as a model of successful cooperation for the bloc, noting that trade turnover between the EAEU and Việt Nam reached US$8.3 billion last year. He pledged to work with member states to address Việt Nam’s concerns, while agreeing to strengthen cooperation in digital transformation and technology and to organise activities marking the 10th anniversary of the FTA signing.

At a separate meeting with the Belarusian Deputy PM, both sides expressed satisfaction with the progress in bilateral relations across politics, trade, tourism and other spheres, especially since Party General Secretary Tô Lâm's state visit to Belarus in May 2025.

Dũng called on Belarus, as an EAEU member state, to support the removal of safeguard measures on Việt Nam's textile – garment products and facilitate access to the EAEU market for the country's agricultural and fishery products. He also urged effective implementation of bilateral agreements, particularly the cooperation roadmap for 2026–2028.

The Belarusian Deputy PM stated that her country views Việt Nam as a strategic and reliable partner in Southeast Asia, and wishes to foster multifaceted cooperation. She voiced confidence that Việt Nam will become a key political, cultural and economic gateway linking Belarus with the wider region.

Petkevich also welcomed Vietnamese investments in Belarus and stronger cooperation between localities of the two countries.

Regarding safeguard measures, Belarus will positively consider raising thresholds for Vietnamese textile products, she noted, requesting that Việt Nam open its market further to some Belarusian agricultural and industrial goods. The official suggested that balancing bilateral trade could help address safeguard concerns.

During the meeting with the Cuban Vice President, Dũng described the Việt Nam – Cuba special friendship as a priceless common asset, saying the two countries should continue assisting each other to surmount difficulties.

The two sides agreed to effectively implement the projects on wet rice cultivation and renewable energy, and coordinate to organise activities marking the 100th birth anniversary of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro in 2026.

On Friday, Deputy PM Dũng is scheduled to meet a Russian deputy prime minister, visit Nazarbayev University and the International Science and Technology Centre, and hold a working session with the Vietnamese Embassy in Kazakhstan.

Source: VNA/VNS

Photo: VNA/VNS

Latest Posts

Vietnam has potential to become Southeast Asia’s renewable energy hub: Suzlon

Vietnam has potential to become Southeast Asia’s renewable energy hub: Suzlon

Speaking with Vietnam Economic Times / VnEconomy on the sidelines of the APAC Wind Energy Summit 2026 in Hanoi, Mr. Girish Tanti, Vice Chairman of Suzlon Group, said Vietnam is not only a promising market but also has the potential to become a regional hub for renewable energy development, services, and supply chains.

Nearly seven months have passed since Suzlon first began actively exploring opportunities in Vietnam. How would you assess the current outlook for Vietnam’s wind energy market, particularly in light of the revised Power Development Plan VIII and the country’s long-term energy transition goals?

Vietnam, within Asia, stands out, in terms of its bold targets-almost 24 gigawatts of renewable energy already operational, and 7 gigawatts of wind operational in the country, and set out a very strong goal for energy green transition by 2035, to adoption of renewable energy.

It is the fastest growing renewable energy market in the region, and Suzlon being one of the pioneers in Asia, we have opened up several markets in Asia, with product portfolio ranging from 2 megawatt to almost 6 megawatt now, largely focused on onshore wind.

We see Vietnam market for onshore, near shore also pretty interesting, that is something that is more likely to happen in the immediate future, and we are very confident that we should be able to make a meaningful contribution to Vietnam's growth from here.

Does Suzlon view Vietnam primarily as a potential market for wind turbine sales, or does the Group see Vietnam as a strategic manufacturing and service hub for Southeast Asia in the future?

Vietnam being the largest market in Southeast Asia has a very unique position, because it is an early starter with probably the largest, almost 7 gigawatts installed wind fleet. It is very uniquely placed to play a regional role.

Any company that is focused around renewable energy operating out of Vietnam, will use Vietnam as a regional player, so we too will not just focus on the supply of wind turbines, but also the full scale service of wind turbines, and then using it as a base for the rest of Asia.

If market conditions are favorable, would Suzlon consider establishing its first manufacturing facility or technical service center in Vietnam during the 2027-2030 period?

I think we are in the first phase of kick-starting our build-out in Vietnam, so we are in that stage where we are connecting with all the key developers and customers to see how we can develop long-term portfolio projects with our customers.

And as the outcome of that come out, I think the first phase service business will pick up, then we will have new turbine sales, and with that then we will look at how we can build the supply chain ecosystem in Vietnam, not just for Vietnam, but for the rest of the region.

Suzlon played an important role in helping India develop a strong domestic wind energy manufacturing ecosystem. Based on that experience, what lessons could Vietnam learn to build its own wind power supply chain and supporting industries?

I think Vietnam has a beautiful opportunity right now, we can replicate some of the things we did in India.

First and foremost for any market to grow and develop in a strong way, you need a stable policy.

Vietnam now has a good vision and a stable policy in place, which is very critical.

The second important element is to make sure that you have the right infrastructure to be able to build this.

So your grid infrastructure, your port infrastructure, all the other infrastructure to allow renewable energy adoption.

The third is, you know, having the market development, creating the demand for adoption of renewable energy and energy transition, that is another third important area.

And when we look at building the ecosystem for manufacturing, I think it's important that you do a phased manner adoption of local development of things, otherwise it can hamper your growth.

So while the growth is coming out, not to slow down your growth, it's important that we build out ancillary industries and ecosystems across Vietnam, which can benefit from the growth of the renewable sector also.

Many wind farms in Vietnam are now entering the operational phase and require professional maintenance services. How does Suzlon evaluate the potential of the operations and maintenance (O&M) market in Vietnam?

So you have 77 gigawatts of already installed capacity of wind. Suzlon today operates close to about 21.5 gigawatts globally, around 17 nations that we have this fleet.

Within Asia itself, the largest part of this fleet is there. So very strong competency and we are close to Vietnam geographically also. So I think in India, Vietnam cooperation is very good. So there is a good partnership relationship between the two countries. I think we can leverage that to build a whole ecosystem, which can be of mutual benefit on that.

And definitely the service business is an important piece, and Suzlon has been very strong on the service side. Because we strongly believe it's not just installing the turbines, it's making sure that the green electrons delivered over the life of the project, which ultimately gets investors to kind of reinvest into renewable energy.

Today we see almost 90% of Suzlon's business comes from repeat business, which is primarily because they are happy with Suzlon's performance.

Chinese wind turbine manufacturers have expanded rapidly across Asia with highly competitive pricing. How does Suzlon differentiate itself and compete in markets such as Vietnam?

Cost competitive and affordability of energy is very critical. Suzlon's unique proposition is that, like if you see our current 5 megawatt and 6 megawatt project, which we launched at this conference for the Asian market, the Blue Sky platform, both of these are very uniquely designed to meet the energy profile and the grid requirement of this region and the climate requirement.

The 5 megawatt is largely for the low wind conditions to extract the maximum energy. And you have a 6 megawatt, which is a high wind turbine, which can extract energy from higher 8, 9 meters per second of that.

So I think with this combination of two turbines, today effectively we are able to provide almost 90% coverage of any wind sites that exist in Asia to fit this turbine.

So the competitiveness is coming purely not just from cost, but it is the value delivery.

So from a cost per kilowatt hour, there is a little, at times people just look at the capital cost, but you must also see the life cycle cost, LCOE as we call it.

I think Suzlon product is very competitive on the life cycle cost of a turbine, means a unit cost of generation of electricity from Suzlon will be competitive to any other product. And these two products are powerhouses. They are very strong on performance.

Suzlon is entering a new phase of global growth and business transformation. Within Suzlon’s long-term international strategy, what role do you envision Vietnam playing over the next five to ten years?

We are entering a new phase of Suzlon 2.0, where we are growing the global markets in a big way. We will also grow beyond wind.

So the idea is to do wind solar storage and make firm renewable energy. So we will work with partners and develop plans of not just one or two years from project to project, but build relationships for a decade and help them build their energy portfolio of wind solar storage together.

Technical partner, operational partner, end-to-end service. And Vietnam is uniquely placed with its strong ahead-of-the-curve build-up of renewable energy. So we will be leveraging that for the Asia market build-up.


ADB plans $4.6bln financing package for Vietnam through 2029

ADB plans $4.6bln financing package for Vietnam through 2029

The Asian Development Bank plans to support Vietnam with a portfolio of 27 projects worth approximately $4.6 billion through 2029.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) plans to support Vietnam with a portfolio of 27 projects worth approximately $4.6 billion through 2029, focusing on infrastructure, energy, urban development, agriculture, and public sector efficiency.

The plan was discussed during a meeting on June 15 in Hanoi between Deputy Minister of Finance Tran Quoc Phuong and Mr. Kim Dongil, Executive Director at ADB representing a constituency that includes Vietnam and some other Asian countries.

During the meeting, both sides reviewed future cooperation priorities, including budget support lending, large-scale infrastructure projects, and initiatives aimed at expanding ASEAN power grid connectivity.

According to ADB, the proposed project pipeline aligns with Vietnam’s key development priorities and is designed to support sustainable economic growth. The two sides agreed that future cooperation should focus on large-scale, high-impact projects capable of generating broad economic benefits rather than dispersing resources across smaller initiatives.

Deputy Minister Phuong noted that Vietnam’s financing needs remain substantial as the country pursues ambitious development goals. He emphasized that investment resources will be directed toward growth-driving sectors and regions with strong capacity to absorb capital effectively.

For his part, Mr. Kim Dongil reaffirmed ADB’s commitment to expanding its operations and financial support through 2030. He said the bank stands ready to assist Vietnam in achieving its socio-economic development objectives and expressed confidence that cooperation between the two sides will continue to deepen in the years ahead.



Automechanika 2026 highlights Việt Nam’s new energy vehicle boom

Automechanika 2026 highlights Việt Nam’s new energy vehicle boom

Over 400 businesses from 17 countries and regions have participated at the Automechanika HCM City 2026 exhibition on Thursday at HCM City’s Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center.

HCM CITY — Over 400 businesses from 17 countries and territories are participating at the Automechanika HCM City 2026 exhibition on Thursday at HCM City’s Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center, featuring the latest solutions and technologies across various sectors of the automotive industry.

The three-day event is co-organised by German based Messe Frankfurt Group, Chan Chao International Co Ltd and Yorkers Exhibition Service Vietnam.

The exhibited solutions and technologies cover various sectors, including parts & components, electrics & electronics, accessories & customising and others.

Key exhibitors at the event include leading carmakers from Việt Nam and China, as VinFast and BYD Oway, along with original equipment (OE) and aftermarket manufacturers and suppliers from Italy, Japan, Germany and Korea.

It also offers visitors an overview of the latest trends across the entire automotive value chain, including Việt Nam's rapidly growing new energy vehicle (NEV) market.

Fiona Chiew, general manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd, said: “Việt Nam’s transition to EVs and hybrids is driving change for the domestic automotive sector, with both national and global carmakers making their impact on the market.”

According to the event organiser, EV and hybrid vehicle sales in Việt Nam reached 162,039 units in the first quarter of 2026, up over 36 percent year-on-year, creating expanding opportunities and challenges within the value chain.

The rapid growth of the electric and hybrid vehicle market is creating new demand for components, diagnostic equipment, charging infrastructure, repair services and technical workforce, while also opening up room for growth across the entire automotive supply chain.

She also mentioned that the event serves as a comprehensive platform for international and Vietnamese businesses to connect, share ideas and forge partnerships.

The event also provides visitors with numerous activities, including a Collision Repair Training Workshop, an Automotive Mobility Solutions Conference and B2B activities.


See all blog