As part of his official visit to Russia, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on March 23 met with Chairwoman of the Federation Council of the Russian Federal Assembly Valentina Matviyenko in Moscow.

During the meeting, the host thanked PM Chinh for his significant contributions to the bilateral relationship over the past time and expressed her confidence that the PM's visit would create new momentum, helping to consolidate and further deepen the traditional friendship as well as the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two countries.

Congratulating Vietnam on the successful election for  the 16th National Assembly and People's Councils at all levels, Ms. Valentina Matviyenko expressed her confidence that Vietnam's new legislature will continue to cooperate closely and constructively with the Federal Assembly of Russia, thus promoting the continued strong development of Vietnam-Russia relations.

PM Chinh, for his part, thanked Chairwoman Matviyenko, a dear and long-time friend of Vietnam, for her warm and cordial reception given to the high-level Vietnamese delegation. Conveying the warm greetings and best wishes from Party General Secretary To Lam, State President Luong Cuong, and National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man to Chairwoman Matviyenko, PM Chinh stated that the Party, State, and people of Vietnam always cherish the loyal, close, and sincere affection that the leaders and people of Russia have reserved for Vietnam.

Vietnam has always considered developing the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with Russia as one of the top priorities in its foreign policy, the Vietnamese Government leader stressed.

The PM congratulated Russia on its socio-economic development achievements, and stated that in recent years, Vietnam has continued to develop stably, achieving important and comprehensive results, including completing all socio-economic targets in 2025.

Highly appreciating the role of the parliaments of both countries, including the Vietnam-Russia Friendship Parliamentary Group, in promoting bilateral relations in the past, the two leaders agreed that in the future, it is necessary to continue increasing the exchange of delegations at all levels and through all channels, including the parliamentary channel, thereby contributing to consolidating political trust and creating a foundation for comprehensive cooperation.

Both sides also agreed to continue promoting the role of the two parliaments, coordinating the supervision of the implementation of agreements reached between the two governments in the fields of economy and trade, energy and oil and gas, science and high technology, security and defense, human resource training, and infrastructure; supporting the removal of legal obstacles to promote effective cooperation in the new era; and strengthening cooperation in culture, tourism, people-to-people exchanges, and connectivity between localities.

Welcoming the results achieved at the talks between PM Chinh and PM Mikhail Mishustin, Chairwoman Matviyenko affirmed her support for Vietnam's proposals and pledged to cooperate and support the effective implementation of the commitments reached by both sides.

She emphasised that in the current context, both sides need to promote cooperation in the fields of energy and oil and gas, while also prioritising humanitarian cooperation, promoting people-to-people exchanges, education and training, tourism, and cultural exchanges to enhance mutual understanding between the people of the two countries.

Chairwoman Matviyenko suggested that both sides should strengthen local cooperation, effectively implement existing relations, and promote the establishment of new local partnerships, especially after Vietnam's recent administrative boundary reorganisation, to further improve the effectiveness of this area of cooperation.

She also stressed that Russian people are very fond of traveling to Vietnam due to its beautiful natural conditions and scenery, and suggested that the two countries should organise more cultural days and create favourable conditions for teaching the Russian language in Vietnam to enhance mutual understanding between the two countries.

Chairwoman Matviyenko also expressed her hope that more Vietnamese people would visit Russia, not only major cities but also other famous tourist destinations.

PM Chinh requested the Federation Council to continue supporting and facilitating the integration of the Vietnamese community in Russia into the local society, contributing positively to the socio-economic development of Russia and friendly relations between the two countries.

The two sides also discussed strengthening coordination at multilateral parliamentary forums such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the Eurasian Parliamentary Partnership (ASEP), contributing to peace, cooperation, and sustainable development.

PM requested the Federal Assembly of Russia to continue maintaining an objective and balanced stance, and to voice support for the position and views of Vietnam and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in handling the East Sea issue on the basis of international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

On the same day, PM Pham Minh Chinh received Gennady Zyuganov, Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, along with other leaders of the party. 

Expressing pleasure at meeting Mr. Zyuganov and the leadership of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF), PM Chinh congratulated the party on increasingly asserting and consolidating its prestige in Russia’s political arena, contributing actively to helping Russia overcome difficulties in recent times.

He expressed confidence that Russia, under the leadership of President Vladimir Putin and other Russian leaders, will overcome challenges and continue to develop strongly.

Recalling key milestones in Vietnam–Russia relations, the PM affirmed that under any circumstances, the special bond between the people of the two countries, the two nations, and the two Parties will never change, but rather grow stronger, for the development of each country and for peace, cooperation, and development in the region and the world.

Regarding the situation in Vietnam, the PM stated that with “100-year vision, broad outlook, deep thinking, and ambitious action,” Vietnam aims to become a developing country with upper-middle income by 2030 and a developed country with high income by 2045. In this process, Vietnam hopes to receive support and cooperation from international friends, including Russia in general and the CPRF in particular, he noted.

Emphasising the viewpoint of “solidarity to create strength, cooperation to gain benefits, dialogue and listening to strengthen trust” and “listening with sincerity, sharing with the heart, acting with concrete results,” PM Chinh affirmed that the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) always values its fine traditional friendship with the CPRF.

The PM expressed hope that the two Parties will step up exchanges of experience in Party organisation, building and rectification; promote theory dialogue, practical research and vision-setting; and strengthen cadre training, while further preserving, nurturing and deepening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

Chairman Zyuganov, for his part, noted confidence that PM Chinh’s visit will be successful, creating fresh momentum for bilateral ties.

Congratulating Vietnam on the successful organisation of the 14th National Party Congress and the election of deputies to the 16th National Assembly and People’s Councils at all levels for the 2026–2031 term, as well as its remarkable development achievements in recent years, Chairman Zyuganov said he believes that under the leadership of the CPV, the country will achieve its centenary goals as set out.

The Russian people, the state and the CPRF regard Vietnam as a trusted friend and will continue to stand alongside the country on its development path, he affirmed.

He emphasised the mutual affection and support between the two Parties, as well as his personal sentiments toward Vietnam.

Chairman Zyuganov agreed to foster high-level exchanges between the two Parties, share information on each side’s activities, actively support closer ties between their mass organisations, and enhance coordination and mutual support at multilateral political party forums and joint events, as proposed by the PM.