Vietnam's top leader To Lam to make three-day state visit to China

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and Vietnamese President To Lam will kick off a three-day state visit to China on Sunday, the first overseas trip since the 67-year-old was elected as the top leader of the Southeast Asian nation in early August.

"China is the first country that General Secretary To Lam will visit after assuming office. This says a lot about the great importance that he attaches to the relations between the two parties and countries," a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said in a statement released on Thursday.

During President Xi Jinping's state visit to Vietnam at the end of last year, the two countries agreed to build a China-Vietnam community with a shared future that carries strategic significance.

The two countries are working intensively to implement the outcomes achieved from the visit, the statement quoted the spokesperson as saying.

China hopes to carry forward the traditional friendship and work with Vietnam to achieve success in respective socialist paths toward modernization with distinctive characteristics to jointly advance the global socialist cause, according to the statement.

Du Lan, deputy director and associate fellow at the Department for Asia-Pacific Studies of the China Institute of International Studies, said, "Vietnam has always taken developing relations with China as a top priority and strategic choice. The visit is sending a signal to the outside world that its China policy will be consistent."

It shows that To Lam will inherit and uphold the revolutionary achievements made by late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and previous generations of leaders, she said, adding that his visit will further confirm the two neighbors' determination and confidence to continue the sound development momentum of bilateral ties.

President Xi sent a message to To Lam, congratulating him on his election as general secretary on Aug 3, following the passing of Trong two weeks earlier.

Du said, "Through high-level exchanges, the two countries can further implement consensuses and outcomes reached during President Xi's state visit to Vietnam in December, and deepen strategic mutual trust and practical cooperation in multiple areas."

Vietnam is China's largest trading partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and also China's fourth-largest trading partner in the world. The trade volume between the two countries has exceeded $200 billion for two consecutive years, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed.