Русский
Vietnamese Prime Minister Le Minh Hung has invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to visit Vietnam and attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in 2027, which is expected to be held on Phu Quoc Island.
Le said, “I would like to relay kind words and welcome to you from the president and an invitation to visit Vietnam at any time convenient to you. We are also looking forward to your attendance at the APEC 2027 meeting, which will be held in Vietnam.”
APEC is an intergovernmental forum for 21 member economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region. It includes Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, North Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam. It also includes three official observers: ASEAN, the Pacific Islands Forum and the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council.
Of these 21 economies, four have fully upheld US sanctions against Russia and three partially. Six have free trade agreements with Russia, which has been a member of APEC since 1998 and hosted the forum in Vladivostok in 2012. President Putin has previously been an attendee, while the focus will be on whether US President Trump would attend. Trump has previously been somewhat dismissive of APEC, but the chance of meeting with Putin in side talks may prove a decisive factor.
Le’s move to invite Putin to attend APEC, following Philippines President Marcos’ invitation for him to also attend the next ASEAN summit, to be held in Manila in November this year. Russia’s Pivot To Asia regularly attends the APEC and other regional meetings and recalls Putin’s visit to the Shanghai APEC in 2001 and to Bali in 2013.
