Vietnam Seeks Enhanced Collaboration With French City

Grenoble Mayor Eric Piolle received the Vietnamese Ambassador to France Dinh Toan Thang. Photo: Vietnamese Embassy in France

During a meeting with Grenoble Mayor Eric Piolle, Ambassador Dinh Toan Thang emphasized the cooperation between Grenoble and Vietnam, particularly in higher education, scientific and technological research, and high-tech. He expressed his hope for stronger collaboration in these areas.

Ambassador Dinh Toan Thang wishes to continue fostering cooperation with Grenoble in the aforementioned fields. They are the city’s strengths, meeting the requirements and serving the future development journey of Vietnam and France.

The Mayor of Grenoble expressed pride in the city’s expertise in science and technology training, which annually welcomes nearly 10,000 foreign students, out of a total of 60,000 students and graduate students.

Among them are dozens of Vietnamese graduate students and individuals working at research institutes, contributing to the close connections between the city and Vietnam.

Mayor Eric Piolle expressed his willingness to collaborate in areas that Vietnam is interested in and Grenoble excels in.

The mayor stated that in addition to the strong and longstanding relationship in the fields of university education and scientific and technological research, both sides need to take new steps in economic and trade cooperation. Cultural exchange should also be emphasized.

Vietnamese Ambassador to France Dinh Toan Thang and the delegation worked with the UGA/Gipsa-lab institute, specializing in research on signals, images, sounds, robots, and unmanned devices. Photo: Vietnamese Embassy in France

During the business trip, Ambassador Dinh Toan Thang met with leaders of investment and trade agencies in the Grenoble Alpes region, and visited several of Grenoble’s major research and training facilities.

Some of these facilities include CEA Leti, a pioneer in the field of micro and nanotechnology, UGA/Gipsa-lab, specializing in imaging, sound, signals, and automation, and ST-Microelectronic, which conducts research on electronic chips and semiconductor technology.

These are leading institutes in France for research and development projects in the fields of energy, national security and defense, information and communications technology, materials science, life sciences, and health.

They also have longstanding cooperation programs with Vietnam in the fields of training, research, and development.

During the working sessions, Ambassador Dinh Toan Thang learned about the operating environment and discussed investment and trade opportunities with Vietnam.

The Ambassador affirmed that Vietnam is a developing country with needs in infrastructure, industry, energy, microelectronics, and healthcare. He expressed his desire to develop a partnership with Grenoble in these areas.

Highlighting the potential for cooperation between businesses from Vietnam and the Grenoble region, Director of Invest Grenoble Alpes Métropole Nicolas Béroud highly praised Southeast Asia’s impressive growth in the region.

He believed that Vietnamese startups could implement their projects in Grenoble, particularly in the areas of semiconductor, digital technology, healthcare, and new energy.

Vietnamese Ambassador to France Dinh Toan Thang presented gifts to the Vietnamese community in the Isère region and the Vietnamese Student Association in Grenoble. Photo: Vietnamese Embassy in France

During his visit to Grenoble City, Ambassador Thang and his spouse attended a Tet gathering organized by the General Union of the Vietnamese People in the Isère region and the Association of Vietnamese Students in Grenoble.