On the evening of October 22, 2025, General Secretary Tô Lâm of the Communist Party of Vietnam and his spouse arrived in Sofia, Bulgaria, marking the beginning of an official visit that is already being described as a historic milestone for both nations. Touching down at Sofia Airport at 19:45 local time after a nearly three-hour flight from Finland, the Vietnamese delegation was welcomed by Atanas Zafirov, Chairman of the Bulgarian Socialist Party and Deputy Prime Minister, alongside Vietnamese Ambassador Nguyễn Thị Minh Nguyệt and a crowd of Vietnamese expatriates living and working in Bulgaria. The warm reception underscored the deep ties and anticipation surrounding this visit, which comes at the invitation of Bulgarian President Rumen Radev.
This is no ordinary diplomatic trip. It marks the first time in half a century that the head of the Communist Party of Vietnam has paid an official visit to Bulgaria, symbolizing a new chapter in the two countries’ traditional friendship. According to Sputnik Vietnam, the visit is seen as a major step forward in a relationship that has been built on high political trust and mutual support since the early days of Vietnam’s independence movement. In fact, the roots of this partnership stretch back to 1957, when President Hồ Chí Minh’s official visit to Bulgaria opened the door to decades of close cooperation.
Bulgaria’s contributions to Vietnam’s development have been both broad and profound. Over the years, Bulgaria has trained thousands of Vietnamese experts at the university and postgraduate levels, as well as tens of thousands of skilled workers. Many of these individuals have gone on to become leaders and innovators in Vietnam’s ongoing journey of nation-building. As Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Lê Thị Thu Hằng explained, “the Vietnamese people always remember the image of thousands of Bulgarian students and citizens taking to the streets to protest the war in Vietnam, as well as the pure international solidarity shown by the Bulgarian people during difficult times.” These memories are not just historical footnotes—they live on in institutions like the Việt–Bun Hospital in Thái Bình and the Việt–Bun Kindergarten in Hanoi, enduring symbols of a friendship that has weathered the storms of history.
But the focus of this visit is not merely nostalgia. According to Deputy Minister Lê Thị Thu Hằng, the trip is “an opportunity for the two countries’ leaders to set out strategic directions and elevate the Vietnam–Bulgaria friendship to a new level, especially in areas where Bulgaria excels and Vietnam has demand, such as information technology, quantum science, artificial intelligence (AI), digital transformation, green transition, and biomedicine.” Ambassador Nguyễn Thị Minh Nguyệt echoed this sentiment, highlighting the complementary strengths of both countries: Bulgaria’s prowess in technology, innovation, and human resources, and Vietnam’s robust manufacturing capabilities and large market scale. The hope is that, together, these strengths can drive new forms of cooperation, particularly in the green and digital transformation sectors that are reshaping economies worldwide.
General Secretary Tô Lâm’s European tour began in Finland, where he held high-level talks with Paula Risikko, the First Vice President of the Finnish Parliament, and met with the leadership of the Finland–Vietnam Friendship Association. During this leg of the trip, both sides agreed to upgrade their relationship to a strategic partnership—a significant diplomatic leap that reflects deepening trust and shared interests. According to Vietnam VNA, Tô Lâm stressed that “the Communist Party, State, and people of Vietnam always remember and cherish the support and assistance from progressive international forces, including those in Finland, who supported the Vietnamese people in their struggle for independence and the ongoing effort to build a socialist nation.”
Chairwoman Tiina Sandberg of the Communist Party of Finland welcomed the Vietnamese delegation and underscored the importance of the visit, describing the upgrade to a strategic partnership as “an important milestone in enhancing the traditional friendship between our two countries.” She praised Vietnam’s impressive socio-economic development in recent years under the leadership of the Communist Party and General Secretary Tô Lâm, and voiced pride that Vietnam remains “one of the few Communist Parties in the world today that plays a successful role in all aspects, contributing effectively to maintaining peace, stability, cooperation, and development globally and serving as an encouragement for progressive forces worldwide.”
Both leaders agreed to deepen and broaden cooperation between their parties and countries. Tô Lâm proposed that the two parties continue to enhance exchanges, promote practical cooperation through delegation visits and theoretical discussions, and maintain coordination in multilateral forums such as the International Meeting of Communist and Workers' Parties (IMCWP). The aim is to foster greater solidarity and mutual understanding between the peoples of Vietnam and Finland, with support for both Vietnamese and Finnish communities living, studying, and working in each other’s countries. As a gesture of goodwill, Tô Lâm invited Chairwoman Sandberg and her party’s delegation to visit Vietnam at the earliest opportunity.
Cultural exchange and the preservation of heritage have also been at the heart of this diplomatic tour. While in Finland, Mrs. Ngô Phương Ly, spouse of General Secretary Tô Lâm, visited a Vietnamese language class at Vesala Comprehensive School in Helsinki—a class that’s been running for nearly 40 years and currently serves more than 40 students of Vietnamese descent. Mrs. Ngô Phương Ly expressed her pride and emotion at seeing Vietnamese youth in Finland diligently learning their mother tongue in a modern educational environment. She emphasized, “Vietnamese is not only a means of communication but also a bond that connects each person to their family, community, and homeland.”
To support this effort, she donated a “Vietnamese Bookcase” containing about 120 books, over 300 textbooks, comics, literature, history, and geography books about Vietnam to the school. The following day, Mrs. Ngô Phương Ly and Mrs. Suzanne Innes-Stubb, spouse of the Finnish President, visited the Oodi Central Library in Helsinki, where they donated another “Vietnamese Bookcase” with more than 120 selected books and nearly 160 bilingual Vietnamese books. This collection was placed in the “Book Heaven” area of the library—the first Vietnamese reading corner in Helsinki’s public library system—open free to the public and helping to spread Vietnamese culture and language across Europe.
As the official visit unfolds, it’s clear that the agenda stretches well beyond political dialogue. From strategic partnerships in technology and green energy to the nurturing of cultural heritage among overseas communities, Vietnam is signaling its intent to build bridges—both old and new—across the European continent. The hope, as articulated by both Vietnamese and European leaders, is that these efforts will not only benefit their respective peoples, but also contribute to broader peace, stability, and sustainable development in the region and beyond.
With historic gestures, heartfelt exchanges, and ambitious plans for cooperation, General Secretary Tô Lâm’s European journey is already shaping up to be a defining moment for Vietnam’s international engagement in the 21st century.