Vietnam sees development, environment, youth as pillars of PH ties
By Andrea B. Ramos
As the Philippines and Vietnam mark 50 years of diplomatic relations, Vietnam is looking beyond the milestones of the past five decades and toward three areas that could define the next chapter of bilateral ties: economic development as a foundation of security, stronger cooperation on environmental and green-transition challenges, and greater investment in the two countries’ younger generations.
Vietnam Ambassador to the Philippines Lai Thai Binh laid out the forward-looking agenda as he marked Vietnam’s 81st Independence Day and the 50th anniversary of Philippine-Vietnam diplomatic relations, emphasizing that the two countries share both a history of overcoming challenges and a responsibility to shape a more secure and prosperous future.
“Our two nations embarked on a shared journey rooted in mutual respect, geographic proximity, and common aspirations for peace, stability, and prosperity,” Binh said.
The two countries formally established diplomatic relations in July 1976, building a partnership that has endured through the Cold War, the emergence of the World Trade Organization, globalization, the Asian and global financial crises, and the COVID-19 pandemic.
The institutional foundations of the relationship have also steadily expanded. The Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC), established in February 1995, will hold its 11th meeting this year.
But Binh’s message was less about looking back than about determining how the partnership can remain relevant amid a rapidly changing regional and global environment.
Economic development as security
Economic cooperation remains a key pillar. Binh noted that bilateral trade, which began with the signing of a bilateral trade agreement in 1978, has expanded dramatically.
“Our two-way trade has grown to almost US$8 billion in 2025, making Vietnam the 11th largest trading partner of the Philippines. In particular, Vietnamese rice has consistently accounted for about 80% of the Philippines’ total rice imports,” he said.
Vietnamese investment in the Philippines has likewise been growing. Vietnamese enterprises have invested more than US$90 million, with the figure expected to exceed US$100 million in 2026. Recent investments account for nearly 70% of Vietnam’s total cumulative investment in the Philippines to date, according to Binh.
People-to-people exchanges are also expanding alongside trade and investment. Nearly 500,000 Filipinos traveled to Vietnam in 2025, supported by direct air links from Manila and Cebu to Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Da Nang.
For Binh, however, economic engagement is not simply a matter of increasing trade flows and investments. It is directly connected to the broader question of regional security.
“First, we must further deepen our economic cooperation, recognizing that development is not secondary to security. Rather, development is one of the very foundations of enduring security,” he said.
The approach places economic resilience, inclusive growth, and stronger connectivity alongside traditional security concerns, particularly as Southeast Asia navigates intensifying geopolitical and economic competition.
Green transition, environmental cooperation, and the youth
The second track is the environment and the broader green transition. Binh identified artificial intelligence, decentralization, the green transition and climate change, together with social challenges such as income inequality and population aging, as defining issues that will require deeper cooperation.
The green transition also offers opportunities for cooperation in areas such as sustainable development, technology, energy, innovation and climate resilience — sectors that could increasingly shape investment and competitiveness in the decades ahead.
The third track is perhaps the most fundamental: investing in people, particularly the younger generation. Binh pointed to the existing network of student exchanges, tourism, cultural programs, academic cooperation and grassroots links between Filipinos and Vietnamese as important foundations for the relationship.
“Despite the students’ exchanges, tourism, cultural programs, academic cooperation, and direct grassroots connections, we make our friendship even stronger and more enduring,” he said.
With the two countries entering the next 50 years of their diplomatic relationship, strengthening these connections could help ensure the next generation of business leaders, professionals, academics, innovators and citizens.
A stronger strategic partnership
The Philippines-Vietnam relationship has already moved beyond its original diplomatic foundations: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s state visit to Vietnam in 2024 resulted in the signing of landmark agreements, while Vietnamese President and Communist Party General Secretary Tô Lâm made a state visit to the Philippines in June this year.
“During this historic visit, our leaders agreed to elevate bilateral ties to enhance strategic partnership between Vietnam and the Philippines, establishing a stronger framework and paving the way for new avenues of cooperation,” Binh said.
The elevation of ties comes as both countries confront a region undergoing profound economic, technological, environmental and geopolitical change.
Binh ended by placing the future of Philippine-Vietnam relations within the larger ASEAN framework, stressing the need for Southeast Asian countries to manage competition without allowing it to become a source of conflict.
“ASEAN possesses both the motivation and the resolve to ensure that competition does not slide into confrontation, that lines of connectivity do not become lines of division, and that one nation’s security does not become another insecurity,” he said.
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