Vietnam and Iran officially established diplomatic relations in 1973, but ties only began to flourish in the early 1990s when Vietnam accelerated its process of national renewal, expanding economic cooperation with many countries around the world. With similarities in history and culture, visits by leaders from the two countries over recent years express the political determination of both sides to strengthen and promote bilateral cooperation in all fields.  Statistics show that, two-trade turnover between Vietnam and Iran has only averaged a mere 100 million USD a year over recent times.  Iran is located in the region known as the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), where there has been research conducted on Vietnam’s development. While Vietnam was previously mentioned more often from a historical perspective, it is now mentioned in regard to current success stories./.