General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and President To Lam (right) meets with Swiss President Guy Parmelin in New York on September 22, 2026 on the sidelines of the high-level general debate at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (Photo: VNA)
Vietnam and Switzerland are celebrating the 55th anniversary of their diplomatic relations, established on October 11, 1971, with cooperation expanding across multiple fields following the establishment of a Comprehensive Partnership in January 2025.
Switzerland was among the first Western European countries to establish diplomatic ties with Vietnam. Their connections date back to the second half of the 19th century, when Swiss trading companies like Diethelm and Biedermann began operating in Vietnam. Swiss scientist Alexandre Yersin, who conducted research and lived in Vietnam until his death in Nha Trang in 1943, remains a well-known figure in the country. Switzerland also hosted the 1954 Geneva Conference on Indochina, providing the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (now the Socialist Republic of Vietnam) with an opportunity to participate in multilateral diplomacy for the first time.
Over the past 55 years, political trust has been reinforced through high-level exchanges and regular meetings.
During a meeting with Swiss President Guy Parmelin in New York on September 22, 2026 on the sidelines of the high-level general debate at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and President To Lam and the Swiss leader agreed to advance the Comprehensive Partnership through concrete cooperation projects.
President Parmelin expressed Switzerland's desire to become an important economic and trade partner of Vietnam, proposing joint research in agriculture, biotechnology, green energy and the digital economy. Meanwhile, General Secretary and President Lam called on Switzerland to encourage its businesses to invest more in Vietnam, particularly in banking – finance, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and innovation, and to share expertise in fintech, international financial centre building, digital finance, blockchain and human resources development.
Both leaders set a target of raising bilateral trade to more than 2 billion USD by 2030 and agreed to strengthen coordination at multilateral forums.
Economic cooperation gains momentum
Switzerland is an important European trading partner of Vietnam which, in turn, is among Switzerland's leading partners in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Bilateral trade reached 811.2 million USD in 2024 and 1.04 billion USD in 2025 before standing at 716 million USD in the first eight months of 2026.
Negotiations on a free trade agreement between Vietnam and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), comprising Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, concluded on July 2, 2026, after 14 years. The agreement is expected to boost trade and investment links and create more opportunities for businesses on both sides.
As of April 2026, Switzerland ranked 20th among 154 countries and territories investing in Vietnam, with more than 200 projects worth over 2 billion USD. Major Swiss companies, including Nestlé, ABB, Roche, Zurich Insurance and Holcim, have operated productively in Vietnam, generating tens of thousands of jobs.
Vietnamese Ambassador to Switzerland Chau Mai Anh said these achievements provide a solid stepping stone for the two countries to capitalise on their complementary strengths in innovation, digital transformation, sustainable development, finance and human resources training.
Cooperation in education, culture and people-to-people exchanges also supports bilateral ties. Switzerland has contributed to Vietnamese education and training through environment and management education programmes and postgraduate courses in finance, banking and business administration. The Vietnamese community in Switzerland numbers around 10,000 people.
This year, various activities have been held to mark the 55th anniversary. A celebration held during National Assembly Vice President Nguyen Thi Thanh's visit to Switzerland from September 28 to 30 highlighted Vietnam's commitment to deepening ties, with the traditional friendship and political trust as the foundation, economic cooperation as a pillar, and science, technology and innovation as a driver of development.
The 55-year milestone reflects the strong potential for further cooperation as Vietnam and Switzerland work to advance shared interests and strengthen their Comprehensive Partnership.
VNA
