Vietnam's top leader To Lam welcomed with military ceremony in Moscow

After a flight of more than nine hours from Hanoi, Party General Secretary and State President Lam and his spouse, together with a high-level Vietnamese delegation, arrived at Vnukovo International Airport on Monday afternoon local time.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko, Russian Ambassador to Vietnam Bezdetko Gennady Stepanovich and the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department of State Protocol were at the airport to welcome the delegation.

On the Vietnamese side, Ambassador to Russia Dang Minh Khoi, along with a large number of officials and staff from the Vietnamese Embassy in Russia, were also present.

The Russian side organized a formal welcome ceremony for the top Vietnamese leader and his spouse at the airport.

After the aircraft came to a stop and a red carpet was rolled out, Chernyshenko welcomed Lam and his spouse at the foot of the aircraft stairs.

The Vietnamese leader and his spouse then walked along the red carpet to the position of honor, flanked by Russian honor guards standing at attention.

Military bands played the national anthems of Vietnam and Russia, after which Party General Secretary and State President Lam saluted the Russian military colors, reviewed the honor guard and watched a military parade held in his honor.

The state visit, from September 7 to 9 at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is considered particularly significant as it is the first state visit to Russia by Vietnam's top Party and state leader since 1991.

The visit demonstrates Vietnam's consistent policy of maintaining and attaching importance to its traditional friendship and comprehensive strategic partnership with Russia, while also reflecting the country's independent, self-reliant foreign policy.

It is expected to further strengthen political trust between the two countries and enhance leader-level diplomacy through regular high-level contacts.

The visit is also expected to bring breakthroughs in traditional areas of cooperation, particularly oil and gas and energy, including nuclear power, while making economic, trade and investment cooperation, infrastructure connectivity and infrastructure development new drivers of bilateral ties.

It is also expected to expand air, maritime and railway connectivity and encourage businesses from the two countries to participate in investment projects in each other's markets.

During the visit, Lam is scheduled to hold talks and meetings with senior Russian leaders.

Vietnamese and Russian ministries, sectors and localities have held a series of meetings and negotiations in recent days to prepare for the leaders' upcoming meetings, with a number of important cooperation documents nearing completion for signing during the visit, Vietnamese Ambassador Dang Minh Khoi said.

Russian Ambassador to Vietnam Bezdetko Gennady Stepanovich said the two countries are studying the possibility of Russia supplying liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Vietnam and developing the necessary production infrastructure with the involvement of Novatek Group, one of Russia's leading natural gas producers.

New opportunities are also emerging in low-carbon energy and renewable energy, he said.

In nuclear power, following the signing of an intergovernmental agreement in March 2026, the two sides have completed their domestic procedures for the agreement to take effect and are actively preparing for its implementation, Stepanovich said.

The two countries are also paying particular attention to cooperation in developing a nuclear science and technology center in Vietnam and are continuing to work on the project, he added.