General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and President To Lam made the proposal to USTDA Acting Director Thomas R. Hardy during their meeting in New York on September 21, as part of the former’s working trip to the United States for the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 81).

Drawing on long-standing cooperation in areas such as energy, power grids, aviation, smart cities and digital infrastructure, he said USTDA programmes have helped Vietnam gain access to US technologies, management expertise and advanced solutions.

In its new development phase, Vietnam is seeing growing demand for strategic infrastructure, energy, transport, logistics, digital transformation and high technology. These are also areas in which the US has strengths and USTDA has relevant experience and support tools, according to the leader.

On that basis, he proposed that USTDA strengthen coordination with Vietnamese ministries, agencies and businesses to select a number of high-impact strategic projects for focused support, particularly in energy and power grids, digital infrastructure and data centres, aviation, seaports, logistics and modern transport.

Early involvement in project preparation is expected to help projects gain timely access to US standards, technology, management expertise and resources, thereby enabling USTDA to play a “first-mover” role in cooperation in areas important to Vietnam’s development needs.

General Secretary and President To Lam also called on USTDA to pay greater attention to emerging, technology-intensive and high-value-added areas such as artificial intelligence, secure digital infrastructure, smart grids, energy security and green-transition solutions, while strengthening links between leading US technology, finance and infrastructure companies and Vietnamese partners.

Vietnam attaches great importance to its Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with the US and hopes that economic, trade, investment, and science and technology cooperation will continue to serve as an important driver of substantive, effective and sustainable development in bilateral relations, he told the US official.

USTDA ready to support projects from preparation stage

Hardy, for his part, spoke highly of Vietnam’s socio-economic development achievements and Vietnam-US relations, affirming that USTDA regards Vietnam as an important partner in the Indo-Pacific and values the results of cooperation with Vietnamese agencies and businesses over the years.

Building on the directions outlined by the Vietnamese leader, Hardy said USTDA wants to continue working with Vietnam to prepare and develop high-quality projects that meet Vietnam’s development priorities while creating opportunities for US technology, equipment, services and businesses to participate more deeply in the Vietnamese market.

USTDA is ready to deploy tools including feasibility studies, technical assistance, pilot projects and trade promotion programmes, supporting projects from the preparation stage until they are ready to attract financing and move into implementation, he said.

According to Hardy, Vietnam’s substantial infrastructure development needs and US strengths in technology, management and high-quality solutions offer many new opportunities for cooperation. USTDA will strengthen coordination with Vietnamese agencies and businesses, focusing on specific, viable and high-impact projects and connecting Vietnam’s development needs with US technology, resources and businesses.

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