Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh takes part in the retreat of ASEAN-Australia Special Summit commemorating 50 years of ASEAN-Australia relations. Photo: VNA
Since the establishment of the Strategic Partnership in 2014 and its elevation to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2021, the bilateral relationship has seen significant progress. Australia is the first dialogue partner and also one of the first partners to establish a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with ASEAN. Bilateral relations are dynamically developing in all fields such as political security, economic, socio-cultural and development cooperation.
In 2022, bilateral trade reached over 101 billion US dollars, nearly a 20% increase from 2021. Australian foreign direct investment (FDI) in ASEAN reached over two billion US dollars, a 6.5% increase compared to 2021, almost reaching pre-COVID-19 levels.
Australia is also one of the leading partners supporting the building of the ASEAN Community, granting scholarships for students from ASEAN countries, and providing financial and technical assistance to enhance connectivity, narrow development gaps and develop the Mekong sub-region.
Discussing future development orientations, both sides agreed to make efforts to create strong transformations in economic, trade and investment cooperation, especially through effective implementation of the newly upgraded ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). Additionally, they aim to enhance cooperation in new areas such as innovation, digital economy, green transformation, energy transition, e-commerce and connectivity, becoming new drivers for economic growth.
ASEAN welcomes Australia's announcement of an additional 222.5 million AU dollars (145 million US dollars) for promote cooperation with Mekong sub-region countries, establishing a two billion US dollars investment fund, and other initiatives to promote trade and investment with ASEAN in the future.
Both sides agreed to enhance political-security cooperation, defence cooperation, maritime cooperation and cybersecurity cooperation, especially within ASEAN-initiated and led mechanisms and forums such as the East Asia Summit (EAS), ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), and expanded ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting (ADMM+) as well as enhancing education, training, labour cooperation, tourism, cultural exchanges, and people-to-people exchanges, especially between young leaders on both sides.
Vietnamese fans gather in Australia to cheer for the Vietnamese women's national football team participating in the World Cup. Photo: VNA
To promote bilateral cooperation in the future, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh proposed “three breakthroughs” of economic, trade, and investment cooperation; human resource development cooperation; science and technology cooperation, focusing on developing the digital economy, green transformation, circular economy, and emerging sectors such as semiconductor chips and artificial intelligence.
He also suggested researching the possibility of negotiating an ASEAN-Australia Digital Economy Agreement. Additionally, he proposed “three enhancements” of political trust, cultural dialogue, and building trust. Lastly, he emphasized “three togethers” of building a united and self-reliant region; promoting a region that respects international law and acts in accordance with the laws; and building and shaping an open, inclusive, regionally integrated structure, with emphasis on multilateralism and ASEAN's centrality, which will serve as the core factor in bringing together and harmonizing interests among major countries.
According to Greg Earl, a former member of the Australia-ASEAN Council and a former Southeast Asia 3 correspondent for "The Australian Financial Review," Vietnam is a reliable partner for Australia in further developing closer economic ties, not only with Vietnam but also with ASEAN countries in general.
The ASEAN-Australia Leaders’ Vision Statement - Partners for Peace and Prosperity and the Melbourne Declaration - A Partnership for the Future were adopted at the summit, outlining a vision for the future and providing momentum for the development of bilateral relations across all fields in the future.