Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], July 7 (ANI): Vietnam's Ambassador to India, Nguyen Thanh Hai, highlighted the strong cooperation between Vietnam and India, citing the growing trade, with targeting trade value of USD 15 billion. and investment between the two countries.

Speaking to ANI, Hai stated, 'Currently, we have seen fine development in our trade and investment cooperation.'

He further attributed the success to the strong political cooperation, traditional friendship, and stated, 'One of the advantages of cooperation between our countries is that we have strong political cooperation, traditional friendship, and the comprehensive and strategic partnership between our countries is developing well.'

'With that development, trade and investment have been growing well over the last few years. The potential is huge. We are working with the government agencies of India and in this visit, I had a conversation with Bharat Chamber of Commerce in West Bengal about ways to promote trade, investment, and cooperation even further,' he added.

The envoy expressed optimism about the future of the Vietnam-India partnership, saying, 'We are committed and optimistic about the potential and the future of the Vietnam-India partnership.'

'Right now, we have a trade target of USD 15 billion,' he said.

As Vietnam continues to strengthen its ties with India, the country is also expanding its presence on the global stage. Brazil's Foreign Ministry has announced that Vietnam has officially joined BRICS as a partner country. This addition was announced in June 2025, with Vietnam becoming the tenth partner country.

Earlier, Leaders of the BRICS nations welcomed Indonesia as a member of the group, while 10 nations, including Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Nigeria, Malaysia, Thailand, Cuba, Vietnam, Uganda, and Uzbekistan, as partner countries.

Vietnam becomes the tenth BRICS partner country, alongside Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda and Uzbekistan. The partner-country category was established at the XVI BRICS Summit, in Kazan, in October 2024, as per the BRICS official statement.

The joint declaration of the 17th BRICS Summit in Brazil's Rio de Janeiro on Sunday stated, 'We welcome the Indonesia as a BRICS member, as well as the Belarus, the Plurinational State of Bolivia, the Kazakhstan, the Cuba, the Nigeria, Malaysia, Thailand, the Vietnam, the Uganda, and the Uzbekistan as BRICS partner countries.'

PM Modi is also in BRICS Summit, where he met with Brazil president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and thanked him for his warm hospitality and the successful organisation of the Summit.

During the BRICS session 'Peace and Security and Reform of Global Governance' on Sunday, PM Modi stated that the expansion of BRICS and the inclusion of new partners demonstrates its ability to evolve with times and called for reforming institutions like the United Nations Security Council, the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and Multilateral Developments.

The 17th BRICS Summit being held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on 6-7 July 2025, a statement by the Prime Minister's Office said. (ANI)