Activities of Minister Le Manh Hung during General Secretary and State President To Lam’s State visit to Singapore and attendance at the 23rd Shangri-La Dialogue (May 29 - 30, 2026)

Participating in high-level activities during the visit

Minister Le Manh Hung attended the State welcoming ceremony hosted by Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam in honour of General Secretary and State President To Lam and the high-level Vietnamese delegation; meetings with the Singaporean President; talks with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong; and the Vietnam - Singapore Science and Technology Connectivity Forum. He also accompanied the General Secretary and State President to attend and deliver remarks at the plenary session of the 23rd Shangri-La Dialogue, and joined engagements with the Vietnamese community in Singapore.

The Minister also accompanied the General Secretary and State President on site visits and fact-finding activities to study Singapore’s development models in technology and innovation, including visits to the Singapore Rail Test Centre and a demonstration house featuring advanced manufacturing technologies. These activities provided insights into Singapore’s experience in developing modern infrastructure, industrial automation, digital transformation, and the application of new technologies in industrial development.

During the visit, Minister Le Manh Hung also accompanied General Secretary and State President To Lam in meetings and working sessions with executives of several leading Singaporean corporations and enterprises, including CapitaLand, Sembcorp, SATS, Sea Limited, Keppel, and United Overseas Bank (UOB).

During these meetings, Singaporean business leaders expressed their intention to further expand investment and business activities in Vietnam across sectors such as infrastructure, energy, logistics, digital technology, financial services, and urban development. They also reaffirmed that Vietnam remains one of their strategic markets and an important investment destination in the region.

Enhancing supply chain resilience

Immediately following the talks between General Secretary and State President To Lam and Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Minister of Industry and Trade Le Manh Hung and Singapore’s Minister for Energy and Science & Technology Tan See Leng jointly announced the Vietnam - Singapore Joint Statement on Strengthening Supply Chain Resilience. The statement was among eight bilateral documents announced or exchanged on the occasion.

The Joint Statement reaffirmed both countries’ commitment to maintaining open, stable and sustainable supply chains; ensuring the uninterrupted flow of trade, energy and essential goods; strengthening ASEAN supply chain connectivity; and promoting effective implementation of regional economic cooperation mechanisms such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), ASEAN+ free trade agreements, and the upgraded ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA).

The two sides reiterated their support for limiting trade-restrictive measures that are inconsistent with international commitments, while enhancing information sharing and coordination to address supply disruption risks involving essential goods and energy. The two ministers also agreed to advance implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding on rice trade cooperation between Vietnam and Singapore, contributing to regional food security.

The announcement of the Joint Statement reflected the determination of both countries to work together with ASEAN to enhance resilience against global economic volatility, contributing to regional stability and sustainable economic growth.

Bilateral meeting with Minister Tan See Leng on energy cooperation and cross-border electricity connectivity

On the sidelines of the visit, on the afternoon of May 29, 2026, Minister Le Manh Hung held a bilateral meeting with Singapore’s Minister for Energy and Science & Technology Tan See Leng to discuss directions for strengthening bilateral energy cooperation, particularly initiatives related to clean power development and cross-border electricity connectivity within ASEAN.

The two ministers highly appreciated efforts by enterprises from both countries to advance concrete cooperation initiatives on offshore wind power and the export of clean electricity from Vietnam to Singapore. Both sides viewed these projects as strategically significant, contributing to the realisation of the ASEAN Power Grid vision, accelerating the green energy transition, and enhancing regional energy security.

Minister Tan See Leng noted that Singapore has a strong interest in accessing clean electricity sources from across the region to support its energy transition objectives. Singapore is currently studying options for electricity connectivity from Vietnam while continuing to coordinate with relevant stakeholders to create favourable conditions for future cross-border clean energy projects.

Minister Le Manh Hung affirmed that Vietnam highly values energy cooperation initiatives between enterprises of the two countries, especially regionally connected clean energy projects. He emphasised that such initiatives carry not only economic significance but also contribute to advancing the green energy transition, strengthening energy security, and realising ASEAN’s energy connectivity ambitions.

The two ministers agreed to encourage relevant enterprises to continue close coordination in finalising feasibility studies, clarifying power transmission options, electricity trading mechanisms, financing arrangements, and the allocation of responsibilities among stakeholders. These efforts would provide a basis for competent authorities to consider subsequent stages of project development. Both sides also agreed that offshore wind projects serving clean electricity exports require further comprehensive assessment of technical, financial and infrastructure connectivity aspects before moving into implementation.

Minister Le Manh Hung proposed that Singapore continue to play a proactive role within ASEAN in promoting regional energy infrastructure connectivity, harmonising regulations governing cross-border electricity trade, and mobilising green finance for energy transition projects.

Minister Tan See Leng reaffirmed Singapore’s readiness to coordinate with Vietnam and relevant partners to advance energy cooperation initiatives that align with the interests of all parties and contribute to the development of the ASEAN Power Grid.

The two ministers agreed to maintain regular exchanges between relevant agencies of both countries in order to promote long-term and sustainable energy cooperation, gradually building a partnership on regional electricity connectivity, green energy transition, and energy security across ASEAN.

Minister Le Manh Hung’s activities during the visit contributed to translating into action the economic cooperation orientations agreed upon by the senior leaders of both countries, while advancing collaboration in emerging areas with significant potential, including clean energy, cross-border electricity connectivity, energy security, and supply chain resilience, thereby making a practical contribution to implementing the Vietnam - Singapore Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in its new stage of development.