3 July 2025

At 8:00 PM on July 2, 2025 (Vietnam time), General Secretary Tô Lâm held a phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump to discuss Vietnam–U.S. relations and negotiations on retaliatory tariffs between the two countries.

Party General Secretary Tô Lâm Holds Phone Call with U.S. President Donald Trump. Photo: Thong Nhat/VNA

Party General Secretary Tô Lâm held a phone conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump, during which both leaders expressed their pleasure at the robust and positive development of bilateral relations.

The two leaders welcomed the agreement reached by the negotiating teams of both countries on the Vietnam–U.S. Joint Statement regarding a Framework for a Fair and Reciprocal Trade Agreement.

President Donald Trump highly appreciated Vietnam’s commitment to granting preferential market access to U.S. goods, including large-engine automobiles.

He affirmed that the United States would significantly reduce retaliatory tariffs on many Vietnamese exports and would continue to work with Vietnam to resolve outstanding trade issues, particularly in areas prioritized by both sides.

General Secretary Tô Lâm called on the U.S. to soon recognize Vietnam as a market economy and to lift export restrictions on certain high-tech goods.

Both leaders also discussed major directions and measures to advance the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in the coming years. They agreed to promote high-level and all-level exchanges, strengthen cooperation in economic, trade, and investment sectors—especially in key and breakthrough areas such as science and high technology.

On this occasion, General Secretary Tô Lâm reiterated his invitation for President Trump and the First Lady to visit Vietnam, expressing his hope to meet the President again soon. President Trump graciously thanked the General Secretary for the invitation and expressed his eagerness for a future meeting.

Shortly after, at 10:25 a.m. on July 2 (local time), U.S. President Donald Trump posted on the social media platform Truth Social, announcing that he had just reached a trade deal with Vietnam.

President Trump wrote: "I just made a Trade Deal with Vietnam. Details to follow!"

The follow-up information revealed by President Trump was as follows: "I am deeply honored to announce that I have just reached a Trade Agreement with the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, following a conversation with the highly respected General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Mr. Tô Lâm.

This will be a fantastic cooperative agreement between our two nations. Under the terms of the deal, Vietnam will be subject to a 20% tariff on all goods entering the United States and a 40% tariff on transshipped goods.

In return, Vietnam will do something it has never done before: grant the United States full access to its market for trade. In other words, they will ‘open up their market to the United States,’ meaning we will be able to export products to Vietnam at a ZERO tariff rate.

In my view, SUVs — or large-engine vehicles — which have been hugely successful in the U.S., will make an excellent addition to Vietnam’s diverse product offerings.

Working directly with General Secretary Tô Lâm was an extremely pleasant experience. Thank you all for your attention to this matter!"

Source: TTXVN