Vietnam Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung and UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs Ed Miliband (Photo: Viet Dung/VNA)
Vietnam Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung and UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs Ed Miliband (Photo: Viet Dung/VNA)

The two ministers praised the ASEAN–UK partnership’s achievements over the past five years as 98.9% of their Plan of Action for 2022–2026 have been implemented.

The UK is ASEAN’s 12th largest trading partner and 6th largest source of foreign direct investment. In 2025, the UK invested 9.2 billion USD in ASEAN. The same year, bilateral trade was estimated at 45 billion USD.

The UK has played an active role in ASEAN cooperation mechanisms and Political-Security, Economic, and Socio-Cultural frameworks and has consistently advocated for ASEAN's centrality.

To build on these achievements, the ministers adopted the ASEAN–UK Plan of Action for 2027–2031 and a Joint Ministerial Statement on Cooperation on the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP), establishing a strategic framework for future cooperation.

A working session between Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung and UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs Ed Miliband on the sidelines of the 59th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM-59) and related meetings in Manila, the Philippines, on July 22, 2026. (Photo: Viet Dung/VNA)
A working session between Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung and UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs Ed Miliband on the sidelines of the 59th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM-59) and related meetings in Manila, the Philippines, on July 22, 2026. (Photo: Viet Dung/VNA)