Vietnam’s Role in the Recent BRICS Expansion

Vietnam was officially admitted as a “partner country” of the BRICS bloc in mid-2025, becoming the 10th country to receive this status. BRICS partnership status allows Vietnam to participate in BRICS summits and discussions. Previously, Vietnam expressed its willingness to discuss partnership with BRICS, and being invited to attend the BRICS Expanded Summit (such as in Kazan, Russia in October 2024) shows Vietnam's increasingly prominent role in this mechanism.

In the context of BRICS promoting the expansion of influence (expanding membership to 11 countries, admitting more economies such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Indonesia, etc.), Vietnam's presence as a partner contributes to strengthening the group's voice, while creating a bridge between BRICS and other multilateral forums.

Vietnam affirms its readiness to coordinate BRICS cooperation programs with regional and international mechanisms, promoting sustainable development goals, trade-investment, infrastructure connectivity and people-to-people exchange. This is an outstanding contribution of Vietnam to linking BRICS with the international community, in line with Vietnam's foreign policy of independence, autonomy, multilateralization and diversification of relations.

Impact on international position and trade negotiations with the EU

Being more closely aligned with BRICS gives Vietnam a strategic advantage in enhancing its international position. Joining a bloc of emerging economies that accounts for over 40% of the world's population gives Vietnam more forums to demonstrate the leading role of developing countries and promote a fairer global economic order

At the same time, this move reaffirms Vietnam's East-West balanced foreign policy: actively integrating with emerging powers while maintaining close relations with Western partners. In fact, Vietnam has been deeply integrated into the world economy with a wide network of free trade agreements (including the EVFTA with the EU). Thanks to that, Vietnam has many options for cooperation in terms of markets and capital sources, reducing excessive dependence on any one bloc

This balance helps strengthen Vietnam's bargaining power when negotiating trade with the EU. Vietnam can be more confident in negotiating, because if a partner imposes unfavorable conditions, Vietnam still has strong economic relations with other markets and financial institutions from the BRICS bloc (such as the New Development Bank of BRICS).

In contrast, the EU also sees Vietnam as a strategic partner in emerging Asia. After the EVFTA took effect, Vietnam's export turnover to the EU increased by nearly 50% and imports from the EU increased by more than 40% - demonstrating the bilateral benefits of engaging with Vietnam. Therefore, Vietnam's diversification of relations to BRICS will encourage the EU to be more active in cooperation, in order to maintain its influence in the region and ensure that trade benefits with Vietnam are not diminished in a competitive world.

Impact on trade relations with the Czech Republic and Slovakia

For traditional partners in Central and Eastern Europe such as the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Vietnam's entry into the BRICS mechanism poses both challenges and opportunities. On the one hand, if these countries do not quickly strengthen their relations with Vietnam, they risk falling behind as Vietnam increasingly engages with emerging powers. On the other hand, if they are proactive, the Czech Republic and Slovakia can take advantage of Vietnam's position as an East-West bridge to expand their presence in the ASEAN region and developing markets.

In fact, economic relations between Vietnam and the Czech Republic and Slovakia are on the rise thanks to the EVFTA. In 2024, two-way trade between Vietnam and the Czech Republic will reach about 3.8 billion USD, up 26% over the previous year; Vietnam has become a key partner of the Czech Republic in ASEAN and a gateway connecting this bloc with Europe. The Czech Republic also upgraded its relations with Vietnam to a Strategic Partnership (1/2025) to promote cooperation in all areas from economy, defense to technology

Similarly, Slovakia considers Vietnam one of its leading partners in the Asia-Pacific region and is aiming to establish a Strategic Partnership

Slovak officials appreciate Vietnam's international role and want to increase their commercial presence (typically sending more economic attachés to Vietnam) to seize opportunities from the growing Vietnamese market

Clearly, Vietnam's participation in both the Eastern and Western blocs makes this country an indispensable partner. BRICS is seen as a rising counterweight to Western powers, reflecting the increasingly clear trend of a multipolar world. Therefore, in order not to be left behind in the new order, the EU in general and the Czech Republic and Slovakia in particular need to proactively promote cooperation with Vietnam right now, based on existing frameworks (EVFTA, strategic partnership, etc.) to benefit together and maintain their position in a competitive multipolar world.