The EU and Vietnam have upgraded their relationship to a "comprehensive strategic partnership," aligning the EU with the US, China, and Russia in diplomatic status.
The European Union and Vietnam quietly pulled off a major diplomatic upgrade on Thursday, elevating their relationship to a “comprehensive strategic partnership” — Hanoi’s highest level of foreign ties — amid growing anxiety over global trade disruptions and Washington’s escalating tariff regime.
The move puts the EU in the same top-tier diplomatic bracket as the United States, China and Russia, signalling Brussels’ ambitions to deepen its footprint in Southeast Asia’s booming manufacturing hub.
“At a moment when the international rules-based order is under threat from multiple sides, we need to stand side by side as reliable and predictable partners,” European Council President Antonio Costa said, adding that the partnership is about “developing spheres of shared prosperity.”
Costa arrived in Hanoi after an official visit to India alongside European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, where Brussels reached a free trade agreement on Tuesday after nearly two decades of negotiations.
The announcement comes just days after Vietnam’s Communist Party re-elected General Secretary To Lam, consolidating his push for aggressive economic reforms to sustain the country’s export-driven growth.
Vietnam’s President Luong Cuong called the move a “historic milestone,” but the stakes are far from symbolic.
Vietnam has emerged as one of globalisation’s biggest winners, transforming itself into a manufacturing powerhouse for electronics, garments, and consumer goods as multinational companies quietly shift production out of China.
For Brussels, the deal strengthens access to one of Asia’s fastest-growing manufacturing hubs and supports its efforts to diversify supply chains amid growing global tensions and US President Donald Trump’s aggressive trade policies.
Trade between Vietnam and the EU reached more than $66.8 billion (€55.9 billion) in the first 11 months of last year, up 6.6% from the year prior.
The EU is Vietnam’s fourth-largest trading partner, third-largest export market and fifth-largest import source. Vietnam is the EU’s biggest trading partner in Southeast Asia.
Vietnam hopes to continue its growth to realise its goal of becoming a ‘rich nation’ by 2045 and is aggressively seeking new markets to reduce its reliance on the US, its largest export destination.
Hanoi’s exports to Washington account for about 30% of the total goods the country sends abroad, largely facilitated by a free trade agreement signed between the two in 2020.