Category: Politics

Hanoi: National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue extended a warm welcome to Vice President of the Lao legislature Chaleun Yiapaoher, the first foreign guest to visit the Vietnamese NA in the new year of 2024, during a reception in Hanoi on January 4.

Chairman Hue congratulated the Lao National Assembly on successfully holding the Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam (CLV) Parliamentary Summit in December 2023, saying the event’s success marked the important role of the Lao legislature in the cooperation mechanism among the parliaments of the three countries as well as in the region.

Highlighting the ongoing progress of the cooperation agreement between the two legislatures, Hue affirmed the Vietnamese NA’s commitments to dedicating its utmost efforts to make legislative collaboration a crucial component of bilateral ties, including law-making matters and decisions on important national issues.

Chaleun Yiapaoher, in reply, attributed the CLV Parliament Summit’s success to the support provided by the Vietnamese NA.

He sai
d his visit aims to acquire experience to compile a history book marking the 50-year journey of the Lao NA’s establishment and development.

He briefed the host about his successful talks with NA Vice Chairman Nguyen Khac Dinh, and working sessions with NA Secretary General and Chairman of the NA Office Bui Van Cuong and the Legislative Research Institute to specifically discuss experiences in compiling the history book and fine-tuning legal regulations which is particularly relevant as Laos is preparing to amend its Constitution.

The host affirmed that the Vietnamese NA and its agencies are ready to cooperate and share experience with the Lao NA in building and improving the Lao legal system in the best possible way. Both sides should hold in-depth workshops to provide scientific insights for policy and law formulation.

He also shared insights into the compilation of the history book marking 80 years of the Vietnamese NA, as part of activities celebrating the 80th anniversary of its first general election
(January 6) in 2026.

He expressed his support for the guest’s proposal to create a book documenting the history of the relationship between the Lao and Vietnamese legislatures.

On the occasion, he said Vietnam always supports and stays ready to assist Laos in successfully fulfilling its role as the Chair of ASEAN and ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) this year./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi: Politburo member, President Vo Van Thuong, who is Chairman of the Council of National Defence and Security, on January 4 chaired the 4th meeting of the council.

The meeting also saw the attendance of Politburo members: Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh – Vice Chairman of the Council, National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue – Member of the Council, Minister of Public Security Gen. To Lam – Member of the Council, and Minister of National Defence Gen. Phan Van Giang – Member of the Council, among others.

At the meeting, the council discussed and gave opinions on the results achieved in various fields, especially national defence, security, and foreign affairs, over the past time.

Participants in the meeting analysed and assessed the world and regional situation and its impacts and influence on Vietnam. They proposed the agenda and tasks for the council in 2024.

The council agreed that its meetings in 2024 will focus on important, strategic issues related to national defence, security, and foreign affai
rs. Based on the results of the discussions, it will propose suggestions to the Politburo, the National Assembly, and the Government.

On behalf of the council, President Thuong praised the military, police, and diplomatic forces for completing political tasks and achieving many important and comprehensive results.

He said that the world situation is expected to continue developing complicatedly and unpredictably, so the forces and relevant agencies will have to continue to uphold the achieved results, closely follow and effectively implement the policies, guidelines, and decisions of the Politburo and the Secretariat of the Party Central Committee, the National Assembly and the Government as well as the direction of Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong on national defence, security and foreign affairs.

They were asked to focus on implementing the Resolution of the 8th plenum of the 13th Party Central Committee on the strategy to protect the Fatherland in the new situation, meeting the requirements of f
irmly protecting the independence, sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity of the Fatherland, ensuring national security, maintaining social order and safety, and stepping up comprehensive and extensive international integration.

President Thuong emphasised that in the coming time, the council needs to continue to closely follow, monitor, proactively grasp, study, analyse, evaluate, and forecast the world, regional, and domestic situation, especially emerging strategic issues that affect Vietnam’s national defence and security so that it can properly propose policies and solutions to the Party and the State.

It is also necessary to focus on protecting the Party’s ideological foundation and fighting hostile forces; and continuing to promote the tradition and strength of the great national unity bloc in the cause of national construction and protection, he stressed./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Sofia: Ambassador Do Hoang Long, representing Vietnam in Bulgaria, emphasised the significance of the upcoming official visit to Vietnam by Speaker of the National Assembly of Bulgaria Rosen Dimitrov Jeliazkov from January 5-9, during an exclusive interview recently granted to the Vietnam News Agency.

Ambassador Long underscored that this marks the first visit by a high-ranking Bulgarian leader to Vietnam in over a decade, following Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev’s visit in October 2013. Notably, it is deemed a reciprocal visit following the official Bulgaria visit by Chairman of the Vietnamese National Assembly Vuong Dinh Hue in September last year.

This demonstrates the appreciation and sentiment that the Bulgarian State and people always extend to Vietnam as a traditional, reliable, and loyal friend and one of the most important partners in Southeast Asia, he said, adding that the visit will contribute to opening up opportunities to enhance bilateral cooperation both bilaterally and multilaterally,
towards celebrations for the 75th anniversary of Vietnam-Bulgaria diplomatic ties.

With the above significance, the visit will, on one hand, focus on further nurturing the already robust political relations between the two countries through the Party, State, Government and people-to-people channels. On the other hand, it will present an opportunity for both sides to engage in discussions on global and regional issues of mutual concern; intensify substantial and effective bilateral ties, particularly in areas of their strengths such as trade-investment, education, health care, culture, tourism, labour, and locality-to-locality cooperation.

Through a busy agenda between the Bulgarian delegation and Vietnamese high-ranking leaders, ministries and agencies, he said the Vietnamese side will affirm its consistent foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multilateralisation and diversification of ties for peace, cooperation and development. It will also convey Vietnam’s message of a reliable and responsible
partner in the international community, seek continued invaluable support from the European country on issues of shared interest, he added.

The Ambassador highlighted the two countries’ good friendship and cooperation since Vietnam and Bulgaria set up their diplomatic ties in 1950.

Addressing cooperation between the two legislatures, he underlined efforts to facilitate visits, hold conferences, and engage in thematic discussions. The focus is on sharing information and experience in parliamentary activities and consulting each other at global and regional conferences and inter-parliamentary forums.

In the realms of culture and tourism, both nations are actively selecting cultural and art activities to collaborate on, such as Cultural Day, art exhibition, film week, music performances and food fair, contributing to stepping up cultural and people-to-people exchanges. They will also make it easier for firms to bring skilled workers in tourism sector to each other for long-term or seasonal work.

Universities
from both countries have regularly engaged in the exchange of lecturers, students and graduates; scientific research, and holding international workshops on various fields of strength such as health care, biotechnology, agriculture, environment and natural resource management, he said.

Ambassador Long also saw ample opportunities to further elevate bilateral ties to a strategic partnership and hoped that the upcoming visit will yield consensus on the progress of cooperation documents to effectively develop joint efforts between the two legislatures./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi: Vietnam strongly condemned the bombing in Kerman city in Southeastern Iran on January 3, which claimed hundreds of lives and injuries, Spokeswoman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang has said.

Hang made the comment on January 4 while answering to a reporter’s query on Vietnam’s response to the bombing.

Vietnam would like to extend its deep condolences to the Government and people of Iran, and the families of the victims, she said, believing that those who staged the attack must be punished properly./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi: Amid numerous difficulties and uncertainties in the global situation last year, Vietnam has obtained significant results, making breakthroughs and historic achievements. These have become a ‘highly impressive bright spot’ in the country’s achievements over the last more than half of the 13th National Party Congress as assessed by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

Le Hoai Trung, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and Chairman of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for External Relations, made the comment in an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency on the outstanding achievements in 2023 and orientations for foreign affairs in 2024.

First, he noted, the foreign policy identified at the 13th National Party Congress attaches importance to neighbouring countries. Last year, Vietnam continued enhancing political trust, expanding cooperation, creating new milestones, and consolidating relations with neighbouring nations.

With regard to China, the successful visit to Vietnam from D
ecember 12-13, 2023 by General Secretary of the Communist Party of China and President of China Xi Jinping, his spouse, and a high-ranking Party and State delegation of China, and the trip to China from October 30 to November 1, 2022 by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong right after the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China were historic landmarks in the relations between the two Parties and the two countries. These particularly important events intensified and elevated the Vietnam – China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, helped build a strategic community with a shared future, and created new and important favourable conditions for developing the bilateral ties more steadily, stably, and practically.

To Laos and Cambodia – the two neighbouring countries holding special positions and importance, the second high-level meeting in 30 years among the top leaders of the three Parties of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia on September 7, 2023, the Vietnamese Party leader’s bilateral
meetings with his counterparts of the other two countries, the meetings among the three countries’ Prime Ministers, and the three countries’ first Parliamentary Summit on December 5, 2023 strongly affirmed that their special solidarity, close-knit ties, and mutual support are objectively inevitable, vital, and also a factor of leading importance to the security and development of each nation. Vietnam’s economic ties with the other two countries were identified as breakthrough fields while defence – security cooperation also made new progress, Trung continued.

He noted that General Secretary Trong, other key Party and State leaders of Vietnam, and leaders of other Southeast Asian countries paid many mutual visits, exchanged opinions, and held meetings via different forms to enhance mutual understanding and outline orientations for cooperation in bilateral aspects and within the ASEAN framework, thus meeting demand of each country and ASEAN in the new context.

Vietnam joined hands with China, Laos, and Cambod
ia in improving the effectiveness of border management, combating crimes, dealing with issues emerging in a timely manner, and gaining new results in the building of land borders of peace, cooperation, and development.

Besides, Vietnam coordinated with the neighbouring coastal countries to boost partnerships in multiple areas and promote contact mechanisms on sea-related issues, he said, adding that it also persistently and resolutely protected its rights and legitimate interests in line with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and actively contributed to the maintenance of peace and stability and the enhancement of cooperation in the East Sea.

Second, Vietnam actively implemented the 13th National Party Congress’s policy on further promoting and strengthening bilateral cooperation with partners, especially strategic partners, comprehensive partners, and other important ones, the official went on.

Trung elaborated that during the visit to Vietnam
by US President Joe Biden from September 10-11, 2023 at the invitation of Party General Secretary Trong, the two sides established the ‘Comprehensive strategic partnership for peace, cooperation, and sustainable development’. As a result, for the first time since the foundation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, now the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, in 1945 – which was also the year of the UN’s establishment, Vietnam is a strategic partner or comprehensive strategic partner with all permanent members of the UN Security Council.

He said that from May 21-23 last year, Dmitry Medvedev, Chairman of the United Russia Party and Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, visited Vietnam and had talks with Party General Secretary Trong. Via the trip, Vietnam showed the importance it has attached to sound relations with Russia, the latter’s effective and precious assistance for the Southeast Asian nation during wartime and for national construction and protection, the strategic importance
of bilateral ties, and the continued promotion of the two countries’ comprehensive strategic partnership in a way matching each nation’s conditions, thereby contributing to peace, cooperation, and development in Asia-Pacific and the world.

Meanwhile, the Vietnam – India comprehensive strategic partnership continued to flourish in various areas, including politics, trade, and defence, the official said, noting that India views Vietnam as one of its leading partners in the region.

In late 2023, Vietnam and Japan elevated bilateral relations to a Comprehensive strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia and the world.

During a visit to Vietnam by President of the Republic of Korea Yoon Suk Yeol from June 22-24, 2023, the two countries exchanged 17 cooperation documents that match the orientations of their comprehensive strategic partnership set up in December 2022, Trung said.

Trung highlighted new strides in Vietnam’s relations with Australia, New Zealand, others in the South Pacific, the Europea
n Union and its members, and the UK. He also mentioned the countries having traditional friendship with Vietnam, especially Cuba, as well as the nations currently showing new roles in the Middle East and Africa like Iran, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Turkey, South Africa, and Tanzania. By establishing diplomatic relations with The Bahamas, and Trinidad and Tobago, Vietnam now has diplomatic ties with all 33 countries in Latin America.

In addition, during a trip to the Holy See by President Vo Van Thuong in July 2023, the two sides agreed on the Status of the Resident Papal Representative and the Office of the Resident Papal Representative in Vietnam at the 10th session of the Joint Working Group between Vietnam and the Holy See in March 2023. Last December, the Pope appointed the first Resident Papal Representative in Vietnam.

Third, other important aspects of external affairs and diplomacy were also promoted and reaped encouraging results, the official stated.

In particular, economic diplomacy actively helped b
oost socio-economic recovery and development after the COVID-19 pandemic and grasp opportunities to meet new development demand of the country. The issues of economy, trade, investment, official development assistance (ODA), science – technology, labour, and legitimate economic interests of the Vietnamese State, businesses, and people were among major issues discussed between Vietnam and partners, particularly during high-level meetings and visits. Vietnam remained a leading country in participating in multilateral trade, economic, and investment frameworks and initiatives, thus expanding its economic cooperation chances with many partners.

Besides, multilateral diplomacy in external relations of the Party, State, and people considerably helped bring into play the role of international institutions and laws, strengthen cooperation in the settlement of common issues, and promote national interests, he remarked, affirming that Vietnam is an active and responsible member of the international community as seen i
n its engagement in global efforts in response to climate change.

Fourth, Trung added, researching, forecasting, and advising activities related to external relations were carried out frequently and involved the close coordination among relevant agencies, serving as an important basis for implementing the Party and State’s foreign policy and responding to new issues in a timely manner. The research on the foreign policy style of ‘Vietnamese bamboo’ and the publication of the Party General Secretary’s book on the building and development of comprehensive and modern diplomacy deeply imbued with the characteristics of ‘Vietnamese bamboo’ also attracted great attention from the public in the country and the world.

The significant results of external affairs in 2023, along with the achievements assessed as ‘bright spots’ of the last half of the 13th National Party Congress, have brought into play the role of external relations, identified by the 13th National Party Congress as the pioneer in creating and maintai
ning a peaceful and stable environment, mobilising external resources for development, raising Vietnam’s stature and prestige, and generating new strategic opportunities so that the country can enhance foreign relations, secure a favourable complexion of external relations, and capitalise on new and important conditions to realise the industrialisation, modernisation, and national development targets set by the 13th National Party Congress.

The implementation results of Vietnam’s foreign policy also had many international impacts such as contributing to common affairs of the international community, consolidating the role of ASEAN and developing countries, and reflecting the significance of a foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, friendship, cooperation, development, and diversification and multilateralisation of foreign relations in the current world, according to the official.

He attributed the success of Vietnam’s external relations firstly to the fortune, strength, and international stat
ure and prestige that the country has never had as it does nowadays; the Party’s sound guideline for foreign relations and the foreign policy style deeply imbued with the characteristics of ‘Vietnamese bamboo’; and the leadership of the Party Central Committee, with the direct and regular leadership of the Political Bureau and the Secretariat of the Party Central Committee, headed by General Secretary Trong.

The Party leader, State President, Prime Minister, National Assembly Chairman, along with the Permanent member of the Party Central Committee’s Secretariat, Politburo members, members of the Secretariat, the Vice State President, Deputy PMs, and National Assembly Vice Chairpersons directly engaged in important diplomatic activities, thus strongly stepping up the implementation of the Party and State’s foreign policy, particularly towards major and important partners.

Underlining the coordination among the three pillars of the Party’s, State’s, and people’s external relations, Trung noted officials of th
e Party at all levels met and worked with not only those of foreign political parties but also the governments and people’s organisations of other countries. When visiting Vietnam via the State channel, international partners also wished to meet with leaders of the Vietnamese Party, which showed that they are knowledgeable about and respect Vietnam’s political regime as well as the stature, role, and prestige of the Party and its leaders.

Talking about the orientations for external relations in 2024, Trung said Vietnam will continue implementing the foreign policy identified at the 13th National Party Congress, adhere to General Secretary Trong’s directions given at the recent national conference on external affairs and the 32nd diplomatic conference, and focus on the leading task of sustaining a peaceful and stable environment and firmly protecting the country’s independence, sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity.

Another important thing is to effectively carry out the agreements with international
partners and make use of new and favourable strategic opportunities, he added./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi: General Secretary of the Vietnamese National Assembly (NA) and Chairman of the NA Office Bui Van Cuong had a working session in Hanoi on January 4 with Vice President of the Lao legislature Chaleun Yiapaoher on documents on the NA history as well as the relationship between the two legislative bodies.

Cuong said that Vietnamese NA leaders appreciate the Vietnam visit by Chaleun Yiapaoher, and consider it a vivid manifestation of the Vietnam-Laos great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation.

The Lao guest stressed that bilateral relations are developing well, with collaboration between the two NAs becoming more effective and substantive.

Sharing experiences in building documents related to the NA history, Cuong said that the NA Office has collaborated with leading experts in the field of historical science to compile and publish the 4-volume History of the National Assembly of Vietnam book series for the 1946 – 2011 period, and is currently continuing to research and compile tho
se on the operation for the 2011 – 2026 period.

Priority should be given to collecting blank documents, especially during the war period, meeting history witnesses and leaders of the NA through periods to exchange, interview and take notes to serve compilation work. In addition, newly collected documents needs to be verified and appraised according to strict and scientific processes, he said.

The Vietnamese official also affirmed that Vietnam is willing to support and provide information to help Laos build documents on its NA history.

Speaking highly of the Vietnamese side’s ideas, the Lao guest expressed his hope that that the Vietnamese NA will continue to share experiences and give suggestions, and proposed researching the publication of a book on the history of traditional relations between the two legislatures in the near future./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency