France’s president kicks off Southeast Asia tour sealing deals in Vietnam

Emmanuel Macron is also set to visit Indonesia and Singapore. His visit to Hanoi coincided with a new VietJet order for planemaker Airbus

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Vietnam’s President Luong Cuong and his wife Nguyen Thi Minh Nguyet welcome French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron at the Presidential Palace in Hanoi on Monday. Photo: AP

Published: 1:03am, 26 May 2025Updated: 10:10pm, 26 May 2025

France and Vietnam signed a deal on Monday for 20 Airbus planes, defence and other pacts, worth over US$10 billion, as French President Emmanuel Macron visited Hanoi seeking to boost Paris’ influence in a former colony grappling with threats of crippling US tariffs.

Macron’s first formal visit to the Southeast Asian nation, the first by a French president in nearly a decade, follows US President Donald Trump’s threats on Friday of 50 per cent duties on EU goods from June that sharply fuelled tension with the 27-nation bloc though Trump later delayed that deadline to July 9.

Export-dependent Vietnam, under pressure from Washington to buy more American goods, has made pledges in trade talks to avert 46 per cent tariffs that could impair its growth, fanning European concerns about deals at the region’s expense.

Macron said France signed €9 billion (US$10.25 billion) worth of contracts in Vietnam during his visit.

Deals covered the purchase of 20 Airbus planes, cooperation on nuclear energy, defence, rail and maritime transport, Airbus earth-observation satellites and Sanofi vaccines, a list of documents seen by Reuters showed, confirming an earlier report.

Macron and his wife arrive at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi, Vietnam on Sunday. Photo: Reuters

In total 14 deals were signed, which would be short of the dozens that the French presidential palace had said were in preparation before the visit, but more agreements were expected to be announced on Tuesday, an official said.

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