Vietnam’s top leader To Lam attends India-Vietnam business forum in Mumbai

The event was a key activity during Lam’s visit to Mumbai, the capital of Maharashtra and the final stop of his May 5-7 state visit to India at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Mumbai visit followed the upgrade of Vietnam-India relations to an enhanced comprehensive strategic partnership during talks between Lam and Modi in New Delhi on Wednesday.

Addressing the forum, Lam said Vietnam was not only an attractive investment destination but also a reliable long-term partner for international businesses.

He described Vietnam and India as two dynamic economies playing increasingly important roles in connecting Southeast Asia and South Asia within the Indo-Pacific region.

While Vietnam serves as an ASEAN gateway through its network of new-generation free trade agreements, India is emerging as a major South Asian hub with a growing role in global supply chains, he said.

Lam noted that stronger connectivity between the two economies would deepen cooperation and expand access to emerging markets and evolving value chains.

He also highlighted growing investment flows, with Vietnamese companies expanding in India in areas such as electric vehicles, charging infrastructure and technology services, while Indian firms were increasing their presence in Vietnam’s manufacturing, energy and processing sectors.

Although still modest in scale, these developments reflected a shift from traditional trade toward deeper investment ties and long-term partnership, he added.

Lam said Vietnam and India cooperation should move to a new stage focused not only on scale but also on quality, strategic depth, and long-term value.

He called on businesses from both countries to expand cooperation in areas including information technology, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, clean energy, logistics, data centers, and research and development.

He also stressed the need to strengthen connectivity in infrastructure, logistics, aviation and tourism, while promoting cooperation in workforce training and knowledge transfer.

Lam reaffirmed Vietnam’s commitment to protecting the legitimate rights and interests of investors, promoting dialogue and maintaining a transparent and competitive business environment.

At the forum, Lam and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis witnessed the exchange of 27 agreements and memorandums of understanding between Vietnamese and Indian businesses, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

The cooperation deals covered trade promotion, aviation, culture and tourism, hospitality, logistics, airport infrastructure services, artificial intelligence, and electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

Later, Lam held talks with Fadnavis and Maharashtra Governor Jishnu Dev Varma on expanding cooperation between Vietnam and the western Indian state.

Fadnavis highlighted the significance of the newly established sister-city relationship between Ho Chi Minh City and Mumbai, the first such partnership between localities in the two countries.

He said both cities had strong potential in trade, smart city development, startups and tourism, and proposed the establishment of a joint working group to advance cooperation projects.

Lam described the sister-city agreement as more than a partnership between two economic centers, saying it connected two dynamic development ecosystems capable of complementing each other over the long term.

He noted that Maharashtra was not only home to major corporations and India’s leading financial and stock market centers, but also a key international trade gateway and a cultural hub associated with the Bollywood film industry.

Although Mumbai was the final stop of his India visit, Lam said it held special significance and was expected to open new avenues of cooperation and create fresh momentum for Vietnam-India relations after a decade of development.

On Thursday evening, images of Lam and Modi were projected onto Mumbai’s iconic Bandra-Worli Sea Link Bridge in a symbolic gesture marking friendship between the two countries.

After concluding his activities in Mumbai, Lam and the high-level Vietnamese delegation departed India for Sri Lanka later that evening, with Varma and Fadnavis seeing them off at the airport.