Category: Politics

Paris: French historian Alain Ruscio, who has conducted many studies on Indochina and Vietnam, has hailed the significance of Dien Bien Phu Victory, saying it had a great influence on the struggle against colonialism of peoples around the world, and the historical meaning of the event remains valid today.

In an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the victory, the historian said at that time, the Indochina war was followed by people around the world, stressing that it was not merely a war between France and Vietnam but an international one.

French colonies such as Madagascar, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco and Africa closely watched the war in Vietnam with the hope that the French army would be defeated, he said. Therefore, according to him, the defeat of the French army at Dien Bien Phu was considered a victory for not only Vietnam but also all colonial peoples, opening the path to liberation for oppressed nations.

Lessons learned from the Dien Bien Phu
campaign are still valid today in the current context of many conflicts in the world, Ruscio said, underlining that a united nation that refuses to be oppressed will always find a way, even though it may encounter many difficulties and obstacles.

He noted that during the colonial period, there were many French people who stood up against the colonial regime and oppressive acts against the Vietnamese people as well as Cambodian and Lao people. Ruscio cited many examples such as Gabriel Péri, a French Communist politician, who came to Vietnam in 1934 to express his opposition to the war in the Southeast Asian nation, or journalists Andrée Viollis, Romain Rolland and Henri Barbusse.

During Vietnam’s resistance war against the US, many French people also expressed their opposition to the US invasion of Vietnam. In a speech in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in 1966, general Charles de Gaulle of France denounced US intervention in the region, saying that they would never succeed in making the people of Indochina bend.

Th
e French historian believes that all of this has created a very special relationship between France and Vietnam./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi: The National Assembly (NA) Standing Committee convened a law-making session on April 1 under the chair of NA Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue, with two groups of issues to be tabled for discussion.

Legislators will give opinions on five draft laws to be presented at the NA’s 7th session for the first review, including three amended ones – the Law on Human Trafficking Prevention and Control, the Notaries Law, the Law on Management and Use of Weapons, Explosive Materials and Support Tools, and the Trade Union Law.

The NA Chairman said that for the first time, the committee will review and comment on the dossier of the Law on People’s Air Defence, a new law to institutionalise the Party’s viewpoint on the national defence strategy in the new situation approved in Resolution 44-NQ/TW dated November 24 last year at the eighth plenum of the 13th Party Central Committee.

The NA Standing Committee will also opine on a draft resolution of the NA Standing Committee regarding job positions for full-time NA deputies and
cadres and civil servants under the NA Standing Committee’s management to serve the salary reform.

The top legislator called the salary policy reform, to start from July 1, a critically important task, adding that following this two-day session, the NA Standing Committee will convene other meetings on the issue apart from regular sessions in April and May./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Kien Giang: Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh urged the island city of Phu Quoc in the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang to maximise its potential, strengths and opportunities to develop rapidly and sustainably, while addressing a conference on March 31.

The conference reviewed the PM’s Decision No. 178/2004/QD-TTg approving a project on Phu Quoc’s development by 2010 with a vision towards 2020.

Stressing the important role, position and potential of Phu Quoc, the leader said over the past years, many mechanisms and policies have been rolled out to spur its development.

The locality has drawn more domestic and international attention, its reputation and position have been consolidated, and its infrastructure has been upgraded, he continued.

Chinh, however, pointed to challenges to Phu Quoc’s rapid, sustainable development, green economy, digital economy, knowledge-based economy and sharing economy.

Given its special position in terms of economy, politics, social affairs, tourism, services, trade, and nati
onal defence and security, the PM noted that developing Phu Quoc is the task of not only the island district itself and Kien Giang, but also the entire nation.

He called for stronger determination to turn Phu Quoc into a centre of services, high-quality eco-tourism, and maritime tourism, and a livable place, which is expected to help promote Vietnam on the global tourism map.

Priorities should be given to green economy, the application of scientific-technological advances and innovations, digital transformation and green transition, he said, adding that economic development should go in tandem with socio-cultural development, and environmental protection.

He spoke of other tasks for Phu Quoc like strengthening national defence and security, stepping up the fight against corruption and other negative phenomena, and enhancing external affairs and international integration.

He laid emphasised on the need to push ahead with institution and policy perfection, concerted infrastructure development, decentralisat
ion, production and business, cultural development, and support of ministries, agencies and localities for Phu Quoc.

To ensure its sustainable development, it is a must to focus on environmental protection, he said, urging Phu Quoc to improve its competitiveness in the region and the world to attract more foreign direct investment.

The Government will devise a project and issue suitable documents and submit them to competent authorities for consideration, which are expected to facilitate Phu Quoc’s rapid, sustainable development.

The provincial People’s Committee reported that after nearly 20 years of implementing the resolution, Phu Quoc’s annual economic growth has been maintained at nearly 19.6%. Its state budget collection increased more than 113% last year as compared with that in 2004.

Last year, the island district attracted 321 projects worth more than 412 trillion VND (16.61 billion USD), making up 42.8% of the total projects in Kien Giang, the committee said.

The number of tourists to the local
ity also rose from only 130,000 in 2004 to around 5.57 million in 2023, of them more than 560,000 international, or 4.48% of foreign holidaymakers to Vietnam./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi: Chairman of the National Assembly (NA) Vuong Dinh Hue on March 27 received a US delegation led by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, chairwoman of the US Senate Committee on Armed Services’ Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities.

Welcoming US senators and congressmen, Hue said he believes that the visit, the second of its kind in 2024 since the two countries set up their comprehensive strategic partnership last September, will contribute to strengthening mutual understanding and trust, and developing the relationship between the two parliaments as well as the cooperation between the two countries in an extensive and substantive manner.

Senators and congressmen of several US states affirmed their hope to promote bilateral relations in fields that the US has strengths such as energy, expressway, liquefied natural gas, clean fuel, coal-to-construction material processing, green energy transition, semiconductor, the environment, and high-performance sports.

Hue stressed that Vietnam considers the US
a strategically important partner and appreciates the US’s consistent policy of supporting a strong, independent, self-resilient and prosperous Vietnam.

Vietnam is ready to work with the US in promoting the comprehensive strategic partnership in an increasingly substantive, intensive and stable manner on the basis of respect for independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, and political institutions of each other, in accordance with the interests of the two countries’ people and contributing to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region.

The upgrade of the bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership has created momentum and opened up new room for the two countries to strengthen cooperation across all channels and in all fields, including traditional and breakthrough fields such as innovation, artificial intelligence (AI), human resources training, semiconductor, supply chains, energy transition, and sports, he stated.

Vietnam welcomes the US’s efforts to strengthen
responsible cooperation with the Asia-Pacific region, and hopes that the country, through the Indo-Pacific Strategy and regional initiatives, will continue to demonstrate strong commitments to supporting the central role of ASEAN, the ASEAN-US Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and the Mekong-US Partnership, thus positively contributing to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region.

According to the top legislator, cooperation between the two parliaments is an important component in the overall Vietnam – US relationship. He expressed his hope that US members of parliament (MPs) will maintain their contributions to deepening the relationship between the two countries and their parliaments in the coming time in commensuration with the comprehensive strategic partnership; and step up the exchange of delegations at all levels, especially high-level ones.

Hue confirmed that the legislature and government of Vietnam always strive to perfect the legal framework, improve the investment environment
, enhance competitiveness, and create favourable conditions for businesses, including those from the US, to cooperate in business and investment in Vietnam. He proposed the MPs to continue to pay attention to creating conditions for the Vietnamese community in the US to integrate, develop, and contribute to the two countries’ relations.

Discussing regional and international issues of mutual concern, the Vietnamese top legislator stressed that Vietnam appreciates the Mekong-US Partnership, and thanks the US side for backing Vietnam and ASEAN’s stances related to the East Sea.

Kirsten Gillibrand spoke highly of the ideas and proposals of Chairman Hue, adding that they will be studied by the delegation to be realised for common values and goals of the two countries./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi: Experts and scholars gathered in Hanoi on March 27 for a conference to spotlight the historical values of the Dien Bien Phu Victory against the French colonists in 1954.

Lieut. Gen., Prof. Dr. Nguyen Van Bao, Director of the Political Academy under the Ministry of National Defence, said that after 56 days and nights, the Dien Bien Phu Campaign concluded with a great success, making a decisive contribution to ending the resistance war against the French invasion, leading to the collapse of colonialism and marking a new step of development of national liberation revolution in the world.

The conference is part of activities to mark the 70th anniversary of the victory, which aims to affirm the correctness and the vitality of the people-based defence under the leadership of the Party and President Ho Chi Minh, and educate the youth on the glorious revolutionary tradition of the nation.

Editor-in-Chief of Quan doi Nhan dan (People’s Army) newspaper Doan Xuan Bo said that although there have been many rese
arch, books and conferences on the significance and reasons of the victory as well as lessons learnt from it, many issues about the great victory need to be analysed and summarised.

Participants affirmed that the Dien Bien Phu Victory is the pinnacle of Vietnamese military art.

Colonel Dr. Nguyen Van Truong, head of the Department of Communist Party of Vietnam’s History under the Political Academy, held that the decision to launch the Dien Bien Phu Campaign left many precious lessons for the Vietnamese revolution, which are lessons of staying consistent with the goal of national independence and socialism, maintaining and strengthening the Party’s leadership, and promptly grasping opportunities and giving strategic directions to mobilise the nation’s strength to win.

These experiences have still maintained their values and been applied creatively in the Vietnamese revolution and the national construction and defence, he stated.

Major General, Dr. Tran Minh Tuan, Vice Director of the Defence Strategy Insti
tute said that the resounding victory of the Dien Bien Phu Campaign showed the uniqueness of Vietnam’s military art, marking the maturity of the Vietnam People’s Army.

Participants at the event analysed lessons learnt from the victory, including resistance policy, the promotion of the great national solidarity in combination with the strength of the era, the optimising of political and spiritual factors, military science, political and ideological education, and the coordination among armed forces./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Bangkok: Thai scholar Songrit Pongern has attributed Vietnam’s achievements, including the historic Dien Bien Phu victory, to the enduring qualities embodied in Ho Chi Minh’s ideology and the sound leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam.

During a recent conversation with a Vietnam News Agency reporter in Bangkok, Songrit said the Dien Bien Phu victory had inspired and encouraged the fight for independence in colonised nations worldwide, with the model of solidarity displayed by Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia which ultimately led to their triumph over superpowers like France and the US.

He said the shared ideology and destiny provide a powerful force for solidarity among the three neighbouring countries, helping them overcome the hardships of the prolonged war for national independence. The solidarity among the three countries has continued to today, evident in their shared stance on the international political stage and within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), including initiatives like
the shared border economic zone.

Visiting Dien Bien Phu in 1989 when Vietnam marked the 35th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu victory and again in 1995 when Vietnam joined ASEAN, Songrit expressed admiration for Vietnam’s sustained economic growth, noting that since economic reform began in 1986, Vietnam’s gross domestic product (GDP) has climbed to the third place in ASEAN.

He saw Vietnam’s skilled workforce as a major asset to attract foreign investment and believed that the country holds significant potential in both export production and meeting domestic demand.

Ultimately, he said Vietnam’s goal of becoming a developed, high-income nation by 2050 is achievable, stressing that Vietnam’s progress will be even more robust if it develops in tandem with all the countries in ASEAN, thus fostering a community of shared prosperity in the region./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency