Cooperation Between Vietnamese, Australian Localities Tightened

Governor of South Australia state Frances Adamson and Hanoi students.

Reviewing the 50-year relationship, which is increasingly comprehensive, equal, and trustworthy, Australian Ambassador to Vietnam Andrew Goledzinowski stressed that bilateral cooperation has many bright spots, including collaboration at the local level.

As many as 15 pairs of Vietnamese and Australian localities have set up relations, including Khanh Hoa (Vietnam)- Northern Territory (Australia), Ho Chi Minh City – Queensland, Ba Ria-Vung Tau - Northern Territory, HCM City - Northern Territory, HCM City – New South Wales, and Da Nang – Gold Coast.

Many Australian regional leaders have visited Vietnam such as Chief Minister of the Northern Territory of Australia Michael Gunner (November 2018), Governor of Victoria state Linda Dessau (September 2019), Queensland Governor Paul de Jersey (May 2019), Governor of South Australia state Frances Adamson (November 2022), and Governor of New South Wales Margaret Beazley (May 2023).

Most recently, the cooperation agreement between HCM City and Victoria State (May 2022) has been considered a model of local-to-local relations in the future. With their substantial potential, the localities are expected to promote cooperation in traditional areas like culture, economy, and education, while gradually expanding it to new fields such as urban planning and climate change response.

Australia has become one of the largest non-refundable official development assistance (ODA) partners with an average of AUD92.7 million (USD61.02 million)/year between 2013 and 2019, and AUD 78.9 million/year in the 2020-2019 period. In October 2022, the Australian Parliament decided to increase ODA for Vietnam by 18% to AUD 92.8 million in the 2022-2023 fiscal year, the biggest rise since 2015.

In its 2023-2024 budget estimate announced on May 11, Australia continued to increase 2.5% for Vietnam to AUD 95.1 million. Thus, within 50 years of establishing diplomatic relations, Australia has provided Vietnam with a total of AUD3 billion in ODA.

Governor of South Australia state Frances Adamson and Hanoi students.

With the common goal of strengthening bilateral trade and investment, local cooperation has been strengthened on the basis of the Vietnam-Australia Enhanced Economic Engagement Strategy (December 2021). Accordingly, the leaders and people of the two countries have worked together to contribute to boosting inclusive economic growth, raising income, generating jobs for laborers, and helping to reduce production costs for individuals and businesses.

Local-level foreign relations play an important role in materializing the foreign policy of the Vietnamese Party and State, ensuring unity in foreign affairs throughout the political system.

In the process of socio-economic development and international integration, local-level foreign affairs have been identified as the "heart of integration," contributing to consolidating and utilizing the friendship and cooperative ties between Vietnam and its partners around the world, strengthening people-to-people exchange, enriching cultural life, expanding export markets, promoting trade and investment, and calling for external resources.

In that context, cooperation between Vietnamese and Australian localities continues to play a particularly crucial role and will become increasingly more important after the 50-year mark./.

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