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According to Reuters and Politico , Tô Lâm, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Việt Nam, will embark on a two-day visit to the United Kingdom beginning October 29. During the trip, he is expected to meet British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to discuss upgrading diplomatic relations to a “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership”—the highest tier in Việt Nam’s diplomatic hierarchy.

If successful, the UK would become Việt Nam's 14th such partner, continuing a rapid expansion under Tô Lâm, who has seen the number of comprehensive strategic partners almost double from seven to thirteen in just one year. However, whether the agreement will actually be signed during this visit remains unclear.

The itinerary also includes a visit to the University of Oxford, where Tô Lâm is expected to sign cooperation deals in health and education. According to diplomatic sources, he may also have an audience with King Charles III.

So far, state-run media in Việt Nam have remained silent on the visit, focusing instead on Tô Lâm’s ongoing trip to Bulgaria as part of a broader European tour that also includes Finland. Reuters reported that Việt Nam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs declined to respond to a request for comment.

A Diplomatic “Inflation” Under Tô Lâm? Since assuming the top position in August 2024, Tô Lâm has presided over an unprecedented expansion in Việt Nam’s foreign relations.

In just over a year, the Hưng Yên–born party leader has overseen the establishment or upgrade of ties with six new Comprehensive Strategic Partners: France (October 2024), Malaysia (November 2024), New Zealand (February 2025), Indonesia (March 2025), Singapore (March 2025), and Thailand (May 2025). An anticipated upgrade with the United Kingdom would bring this to seven, doubling the total number from before August 2024.

This activity has extended to other diplomatic tiers as well. Việt Nam added seven new Strategic Partners: Brazil (November 2024), the Czech Republic (January 2025), Kazakhstan (May 2025), Azerbaijan (May 2025), Belarus (May 2025), Finland (October 21, 2025), and Bulgaria (October 23, 2025). The upgrades with Finland and Bulgaria occurred during Tô Lâm’s current European tour.

Furthermore, the list of Comprehensive Partners grew from 11 to 15 countries, with new ties forged with Mongolia (September 2024), the United Arab Emirates (October 2024), Switzerland (January 2025), and Egypt (August 2025).

This surge in diplomatic activity mirrors the objectives laid out in Directive 6/CT-TTg , issued by the Prime Minister in March 2025. The directive identifies a key goal to:

“Continue to vigorously, substantively, and effectively promote economic, trade, and investment cooperation with partners—especially neighboring countries, major powers, traditional friends, and those holding Comprehensive Strategic, Strategic, or Comprehensive Partnerships; proactively balance trade with major partners, and promote the signing of trade and investment protection agreements to build stable, sustainable, and long-term relations between Việt Nam and other nations.”

Decoding Việt Nam’s Diplomatic Hierarchy In Việt Nam’s system, foreign relations are structured into three main partnership levels, in ascending order of importance: Comprehensive Partnership, Strategic Partnership, and Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

According to Việt Nam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) represents the highest level. It signifies broad and deep cooperation across all major domains: politics, economics, defense, security, culture, education, science and technology, and foreign affairs.

Currently, Việt Nam maintains CSPs with 13 countries: China, the Russian Federation, India, South Korea, the United States, Japan, Australia, and the six nations that have upgraded ties under Tô Lâm’s leadership. If the United Kingdom joins, it would become the 14th.

Below this top tier, Việt Nam maintains Strategic Partnerships with about 10 nations, including Germany, Spain, Italy, the United Kingdom (at present), Turkey, and several ASEAN members. The foundational level, Comprehensive Partnership , includes more than 10 other nations, such as Canada, Argentina, Chile, Myanmar, Ukraine, and several African and Latin American countries.

Each level reflects a different degree of diplomatic closeness. Upgrading a relationship usually follows years of stable cooperation, a mutual desire to expand collaboration, and is typically formalized through joint statements by senior leaders. To date, however, neither the 2013 Constitution nor any other legal document has defined or codified the precise criteria for differentiating among these three diplomatic tiers.

Bối Thuỷ and Đức Chính wrote this article in Vietnamese and published it in Luật Khoa Magazine on Oct. 24, 2025. Đàm Vĩnh Hằng translated it into English for The Vietnamese Magazine.

Tô Lâm Heads to the UK, Eyeing Việt Nam’s Next Comprehensive Strategic Partner

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