Luxembourg, Vietnam Discuss Opportunities for Collaboration in Sustainable Finance

On Friday 9 and Saturday 10 December 2022, Vietnam's Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính undertook an official visit to Luxembourg.

In addition to attending the Vietnam-Luxembourg Business Forum at the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce on Friday evening, the Vietnamese Prime Minister met with his Luxembourgish counterpart, Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, the President of the Chamber of Deputies (Luxembourg's parliament), Fernand Etgen, and His Royal Highness Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, among others, during his visit.

Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính was accompanied by a ministerial delegation composed of four Vietnamese government ministers including the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bui Thanh Son, the Minister of Planning and Investment, Nguyen Chi Dung, the Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment, Tran Hong Ha, and the Minister of Industry and Trade, Nguyen Hong Dien, as well as a large business delegation.

On the first day of this visit, the Vietnamese Prime Minister met with Luxembourg's Prime Minister Xavier Bettel for a bilateral meeting at the Ministry of State in Place de Clairefontaine in Luxembourg-Ville. This was preceded by the military honours and the presentation of the delegations. A working meeting extended to the delegations was also on the agenda. Discussions focused on bilateral relations and relations between the European Union (EU) and Vietnam. The exchanges on relations between Luxembourg and Vietnam were marked in particular by the desire of the two countries to strengthen their economic ties, for example in the fields of logistics, green finance as well as in the academic and research fields. Exchanges of good practices in green growth, sustainable finance and the fight against climate change were also on the agenda. During this meeting, Prime Minister Xavier Bettel highlighted that "the fields of finance and in particular sustainable finance as well as the green economy offer us countless opportunities for collaboration".

The two Prime Ministers had the opportunity to continue their discussions during an official lunch hosted by Luxembourg's Prime Minister in honour of the Vietnamese delegation at Senningen Castle, which was also attended by Luxembourg's Minister for Family Affairs, Integration and the Greater Region, Corinne Cahen, the Minister for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and Minister for Tourism, Lex Delles, and the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Sustainable Development, Joëlle Welfring.

In the early afternoon, Vietnam's Prime Minister had a meeting with the President of the Chamber of Deputies, Fernand Etgen, as well as an exchange with members of the bureau and foreign and European affairs committee.

The Vietnamese delegation also visited the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) where the Chairman of its Board of Directors, Alain Kinsch, and the Director of International Capital Markets, Arnaud Delestienne, presented its sustainable finance activities.

Later on Friday afternoon, the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce hosted the Vietnam-Luxembourg Business Forum, during which Luxembourg and Vietnam signed several memoranda of understanding (MoU).

Luxembourg's Minister of Finance, Yuriko Backes, later hosted a dinner in honour of the Vietnamese Prime Minister at the blast furnaces (Halle des poches à fonte) in Esch-Belval. On the sidelines of the dinner, which brought together representatives of the financial sector, LuxSE and the Vietnam Stock Exchange (VNX) signed a cooperation agreement in the field of sustainable finance. Minister Backes recalled during the dinner that "relationships between our countries have grown increasingly stronger in recent years, both economically and financially. Today, sustainable finance represents an opportunity to further strengthen these relationships. Thanks to its international financial centre and its expertise in sustainable investment and blended finance, Luxembourg can support Vietnam in its efforts to decarbonise its economy. In this context, I welcome the MoU on sustainable finance that the stock exchanges of Vietnam and Luxembourg have just signed".

On Saturday 10 December 2022, Grand Duke Henri received in audience the Vietnamese Prime Minister at the Grand Ducal Palace.

Moreover, the Vietnamese Prime Minister and his delegation visited the European Investment Bank (EIB) for a working meeting in the presence of EIB Vice-President Kris Peeters. The meeting was followed by the signing of an MoU between the EIB and Vietnam Electricity (EVN).

Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính also had the opportunity to meet the Vietnamese community in Luxembourg.

L-R: Vietnam's Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính; HRH Grand Duke Henri. Credit: Maison du Grand-Duc