Toronto – Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Monday has arrived in Vietnam for a four days working visit leading his delegation.
He was greeted by Deputy Foreign Minister Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyễn Minh Hằng and Vietnamese Ambassador to Tanzania and Ethiopia Vũ Thanh Huyền upon arrival at Nội Bài International Airport.
The visit was reportedly initiated by Phạm Minh Chính, according to Vietnamese News sources. Apart from meetings with senior government officials to discuss “bilateral relations as well as regional and international issues of mutual concern,” Abiy will attend the 4th Partnership for Green Growth and the Global Goals 2030 (P4G) Summit.
Vietnam News Agency (VNA) cited Việt Nam, Vietnamese Ambassador to Tanzania and Ethiopia, as saying that the visit is “expected to accelerate negotiations on key agreements in such areas as trade, investment, aviation, science and technology, agriculture and cybersecurity. It also aimed to enhance Việt Nam’s presence and image across Africa, particularly in Ethiopia.”
Currently, the trade relations are described as “modest.” Last year, the two-way volume of trade was $13.1 million. Ethiopia ‘s export mainly consisted of coffee and leather products which was a little over $6 million last year. Vietnam’s exports include agricultural products, consumer goods, and industrial items such as machinery, equipment, fibres and chemicals to Ethiopia. In 2024, Vietnamese total export amounted to over $405 billion with the United States and China being the leading destination of its export products mainly computers, mobile phone, electronic components, textile and wood products. Last month, Ethiopian Airlines announced that it will be launching four weekly flights to Hanoi in July this year.
The two countries have over fifty years of diplomatic relations. It has been described as friendly. Tran Dai Quang visited Ethiopia in 2018 when he was serving as the ninth president of Vietnam.
When Ethiopia was under pressure from the international community in connection with the war in the northern parts of Ethiopia at the United Nations, Vietnam, through its Permanent Representative of Việt Nam to the UN, Ambassador Đặng Đình Quý, was one of the countries that opposed intervention in the internal affairs of the country. At the time, it also argued that the “…conflict in the African country stems from deep-rooted political, historic and ethnic issues, the concerned parties must put interests of people first, stop fighting, hold dialogue and start an Ethiopia-led political process, Quý continued. All efforts should be directed towards a comprehensive solution for stability and development in Ethiopia in line with the basic principles of international law and the UN Charter,” as reported by Vietnam news at the time.
Despite absolute dominance at the Ethiopian Parliament with over 95 percent of the seats, the Ethiopian Prime Minister has been experiencing a legitimacy crisis due to failure to deliver on multiples of fronts including security and unity. More so, economic hardship and humanitarian crises continue to be harsh realities for many millions although the ruling party continues to claim “economic growth.” Besides, two of the country’s two largest regions are still experiencing conflict.
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