Sawt Falasteen - Vietnam and EU upgrade ties as EU chief visits Hanoi

"We are elevating our relationship to the highest level, a comprehensive strategic partnership," Costa said at a press briefing.

The upgrade reflects the "depth and breadth" of European Union-Vietnamese cooperation, he said, adding: "We can do much more in trade, in green energy, in development economics, in security and defence."

The agreement comes less than a week after Vietnam's Communist Party reaffirmed General Secretary To Lam as the country's top leader, backing his vision for sweeping growth-oriented change.

Vietnam and the EU signed a free-trade deal in 2019, with bilateral exchange growing by around 40 percent since then.

But Hanoi's ballooning surplus with the bloc has rankled European leaders who have called for the removal of non-tariff barriers on EU products such as automobiles.

Vietnam has emerged as a regional economic bright spot, clocking eight percent growth last year despite new 20 percent tariffs from its largest export market, the United States.

Faced with deepening trade uncertainty, Vietnam is on the hunt for new markets beyond top trading partners, the United States and China.

At its twice-a-decade leadership conclave last week, the party elevated foreign affairs to a "core" national function, alongside national defence and internal security.

Upgrading ties with the EU is part of Hanoi's effort "to diversify its export market beyond the US", said Khang Vu, a Vietnam expert and visiting scholar at Boston College.

"Vietnam wants to maintain an open international environment for trade, and the EU can help," he added.

Hanoi also has comprehensive strategic partnerships with China, Russia and the United States.

It has agreed similar partnerships with nearly a dozen countries since 2022, seeking to tap their markets, knowledge and technology as it pursues a bigger international role.

Vietnam has long practiced what its leaders term "bamboo diplomacy", looking to stay on good terms with the world's major powers.

B.AbuZeid--SF-PST