On October 29, the United Kingdom and Vietnam agreed to elevate the bilateral relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP), strengthening cooperation between the two countries within six key pillars, including:

  • Politics, Diplomacy, Defence and Security
  • Economic, Trade, Investment and Finance Cooperation
  • Science, Technology, Innovation, Digital Transformation and Health
  • Environment, Energy and Green Transition
  • Education, Culture, Sports, Tourism, People-to-People Exchanges, Equal Rights and Other Fields
  • Regional and International Issues

This follows the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA), signed in 2020 as an EU ‘rollover’, and the UK’s accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in 2024. Both countries reaffirmed their commitment to effectively review and implement both agreements.

Tech and Trade:

Both governments committed to the expanded Memorandum of Understanding on Science, Technology, and Innovation Cooperation, focusing on healthcare, greentech, and transformative technologies. Future joint projects between universities, research institutes, government agencies, and businesses will aim to accelerate R&D and commercialisation of technology.

Both sides emphasised facilitating further market access through protecting intellectual property rights, supporting digital trade, removing trade barriers, and supporting businesses to build robust supply chains using advanced technologies under the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement and CPTPP. Both governments committed to maintaining constructive dialogue though the Vietnam–UK Joint Economic and Trade Cooperation Committee (JETCO), through addressing trade barriers and routes to expand economic and investment opportunities on an annual basis.

Commitments to improve access to quality healthcare services include collaborating on digital health, exchanging experts, and joint projects to address health security, clinical services, medical technology, and pharmaceuticals.

As well as further announcement of more academic exchanges and joint programmes in AI, semiconductors, biotechnology, and aerospace.  

Environment:

Both nations pledged to create a new UK-Vietnam Clean Energy Partnership, aimed at supporting the initiatives under the JETP Framework, alongside UK business investment in clean energy, and technical cooperation across renewables, power grid infrastructure upgrades and coal phase-out initiatives.​

Defence and Cyber Security:

Both sides pledged deeper information sharing and training related to cybersecurity, information security, and combating new and non-traditional threats. Both countries agreed to cooperate on best practice exchange and further coordinate on the United Nations Convention on Cybercrime to boost digital trust and resilience.​

You can read the full Comprehensive Strategic Partnership here.

Get involved and learn more:

Get involved in techUK’s UK-APAC Tech Forum, which provides engagement opportunities with key stakeholders in government and business to drive new digital economy partnerships and expand commercial networks across the APAC region.

Join us on 12 November 2025 for this year’s UK-APAC Tech Forum, where we will provides insight on the regional tech and trade environment in the Asia Pacific, as well as practical advice on how to export and expand into the region.