The Prime Minister spoke to the Prime Minister of Vietnam, Pham Minh Chinh, today ahead of COP26.

They discussed Vietnam’s leading regional role on addressing climate change, and the Prime Minister encouraged the Vietnamese government to commit to net zero by 2050 and to continue to take steps to phase out the use of coal power and end deforestation by 2030.

The leaders noted the growing strength of the relationship between the United Kingdom and Vietnam and committed to deepening our strategic partnership further, including on defence and security.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh welcomed the recent support from the UK on COVID-19 vaccines and medical equipment. They agreed to continue working together to address the global pandemic and to increase trade and investment between our two countries, building on the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement and the UK’s planned accession to the CPTPP trade bloc.

The Prime Minister looked forward to welcoming Vietnam to Glasgow for COP26, and to driving global action on climate change together.

UK to provide £500,000 of medical equipment to Viet Nam

The UK is to support Viet Nam in its effort to combat COVID-19 with £500,000 of essential medical equipment.

This commitment follows the donation by the UK government to Viet Nam of 415,050 doses of the University of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine in August 2021.

The UK is also one of the largest donors to COVAX, providing over £548 million to supply vaccines globally, including to Viet Nam.

Commenting on the equipment donation, Minister for Asia Amanda Milling said:

As a strategic partner, the UK stands with Viet Nam in our common effort to combat COVID-19. This is part of the UK’s wider commitment to support Viet Nam and our partners in ASEAN as we work together to build back better from the pandemic.

British Ambassador to Viet Nam, Gareth Ward, added:

The only way to recover from this pandemic is through cooperation. Thanks to our partnership with UNICEF, the medical equipment funded by the UK will be procured and delivered to help those in need, save lives and accelerate Viet Nam’s economic recovery.

Notes to editors:

·         The UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke to the Vietnamese Prime Minister, Phạm Minh Chính, yesterday (26 October 2021). A readout of the call can be found here.

·         The UK has been at the forefront of the global response to Covid-19, including through investing £90 million to support the development of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. Over half a billion doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine have been delivered at a non-profit price globally, with two-thirds going to lower and middle-income countries.

·         Outside of the pandemic, the UK is a close partner of Viet Nam in tackling global health challenges including antimicrobial resistance and non-communicable diseases.

·         On 3 August 2021, the UK donated 415,050 doses of the University of Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to Viet Nam. In addition to this bilateral donation, the UK is one of the largest donors to the COVAX fund, providing over £548 million to supply vaccines globally, including to Viet Nam

From: Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street and The Rt Hon Boris Johnson MP

Published 26 October 2021