Vietnam major pillar of India’s Act East Policy, says Modi as defence, rare-earth ties renewed

BILATERAL – INDIA-ASIA

7 MAY 2026

• India welcomed Vietnamese President To Lam.
• During a bilateral discussion, the two sides elevated the bilateral relation to the level of “enhanced comprehensive strategic partnership” and signed at least 13 documents, including one on cooperation in critical minerals.
• Vietnam is a major pillar of India’s Act East Policy and Vision MAHASAGAR. We have a common outlook in the field of Indo-Pacific. With our strengthening ties in the field of defence and security, we are helping rule of law, peace, stability and prosperity. India will expand ties with ASEAN through its relation with Vietnam,” said Mr. Modi, welcoming Mr. Lam.
• Mr. Modi said India-Vietnam trade has touched $16 billion and would touch $25 billion by 2030.
• Mr. Lam referred to India’s support to Vietnam’s liberation and said, “We will never forget that Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was the first foreign leader to visit Vietnam in 1954, just one week after the liberation of Hanoi.”
• In a joint statement, the two sides welcomed the steady progress in the implementation of the defence Lines of Credit (LoC) extended by India to Vietnam, acknowledging that the LoC helped “Vietnam’s defence capabilities” and advanced bilateral defence cooperation.
• The visiting side also sealed thirteen documents with India, including an MoU between the Reserve Bank of India and the State Bank of Vietnam on cooperation in the area of Payment Systems and innovation in digital payments as well as an MoU on radioactive and rare earth minerals.

Vision MAHASAGAR

• MAHASAGAR (Mutual And Holistic Advancement for Security And Growth Across Regions) is India’s updated, proactive maritime doctrine unveiled by PM Modi in 2025 to strengthen ties with the Global South and Indian Ocean Region (IOR) littoral states.
• It serves as an evolution of the 2015 “SAGAR” doctrine, aiming to bolster security, trade, and regional cooperation while curbing emerging threats.

India’s Act East Policy (AEP)

• It was launched in November 2014, as a proactive diplomatic initiative upgrading the 1991 “Look East Policy” to promote economic, strategic, and cultural ties with the Asia-Pacific region.
• It focuses on enhancing connectivity, especially for India’s Northeast region, to the ASEAN block, functioning through the “3 Cs”: Commerce, Culture, and Connectivity.