HCMC - Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and his wife will pay an official visit to Vietnam from July 20 to 21 at the invitation of his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Minh Chinh, said the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

This visit marks PM Ibrahim's first official visit to Vietnam since he took office in December 2022. The visit will coincide with the celebration of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Vietnam and Malaysia established diplomatic ties in 1973 and elevated their relationship to a strategic partnership in 2015. Malaysia is currently Vietnam's second largest trading partner in ASEAN and ranks ninth globally. In turn, Vietnam is Malaysia's third largest trading partner within ASEAN. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, two-way trade between the two countries totaled US$14.68 billion in 2021, up a significant 17.4% versus the previous year. With 702 active projects and total registered capital of US$13 billion, Malaysia is among the top 10 countries with the highest investments in Vietnam. Conversely, Vietnam has 21 investment projects in Malaysia, with total registered capital of nearly US$860 million.