Vietnam’s Top Leader to Visit China Next Week, Report Says |
ASEAN Beat | Diplomacy | Southeast Asia
Vietnam’s Top Leader to Visit China Next Week, Report Says
If confirmed, the trip to Beijing would be To Lam’s first since his historic appointment as state president earlier this week.
To Lam, the general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), attends a session of the 14th National Congress of the CPV in Hanoi, Vietnam, Jan. 21, 2026.
To Lam, the head of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), is planning a visit to China next week to meet with his counterpart Xi Jinping, days after his appointment as state president.
In an article sourced to several people familiar with the planning of the trip, Reuters news agency reported that the visit is expected to take place during April 14-17, although it said that it was “still being planned and could be postponed because of scheduling issues.”
If it eventuates, it will almost certainly be Lam’s first overseas trip since the 68-year-old was elected state president on Tuesday. The dual appointment, which has been widely expected since the CPV’s 14th National Congress in January, marks a break with Vietnam’s norm of collective leadership in which the four top leadership roles are held by different individuals.
While such a double-up has been rare in Vietnam’s recent history, it mirrors the situation in China, where Xi serves as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and head of state.
According to Reuters, the trip is likely to involve discussions over security cooperation, and telecommunications and railway infrastructure. Vietnam “may also ask for more help on energy security as it depends on imports from China of oil products, including jet fuel and some fertilizers.” Beijing has restricted the export of both due to the supply crunch caused by the war in the Middle East.
Energy was on the agenda during the inaugural “3 plus 3” strategic dialogue that brought together the foreign, defense, and public security ministers of both nations in Hanoi in mid-March.
Lam’s reported visit would also restore a norm in which newly appointed Vietnamese leaders make China the destination of their maiden overseas trip, in recognition of the ideological and historic connection between the two nations. While China was the first nation that Lam visited after his initial appointment as party chief in August 2024, he appeared to break from this after he was reappointed to the position at the 14th National Congress. Aside from a short trip to Cambodia and Laos, Lam’s first major state visit after the Congress was to the United States, where he........