Category: Politics

Hanoi: Acting President Vo Thi Anh Xuan hosted in Hanoi on March 27 a reception for World Bank (WB) Country Director for Vietnam Carolyn Turk, who came to say goodbye at the end of her tenure.

At the meeting, Xuan highly appreciated the WB’s support for Vietnam’s Doi Moi (Reform), saying it is one of Vietnam’s three largest development partners and foreign loan providers.

Such loans have been allocated to different areas and projects, contributing to raising Vietnamese people’s living standards, she stressed.

The Acting President hailed Turk’s efforts in boosting cooperation between Vietnam and the WB during her term, and expressed her hope that Turk, in any positions, will make more contributions to the implementation of joint commitments.

She also suggested the WB maintain its close cooperation and support for Vietnam’s development, helping the country roll out national, key, large-scale projects in infrastructure, urban development, renewable energy, smart agriculture, and climate change response, amon
g other fields.

Xuan called on the bank to continue with its non-refundable aid for Vietnam to implement the country’s international commitments to the United Nations in such spheres as peacekeeping, international security, climate change, sustainable development, water security, and food security.

The Acting President noted her hope that the two sides will launch more programmes and projects for disadvantaged groups and remote areas.

Turk, for her part, affirmed that the WB stands ready to support Vietnam to achieve its development targets.

The WB is working on a document on the strategic partnership with the Vietnamese Government, she said, informing that the bank will work with the government in the near future to over its content, especially financial support for Vietnam for 2023 – 2027./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

HCM City: Ho Chi Minh City and Canada should sign Memoranda of Understanding and promote delegation exchange to concretise their cooperation as they have potential to work together in various sectors, running the gamut of agriculture, industry, service, science-technology and education, Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Vo Van Hoan said on March 27.

Hosting a reception for Treasurer of the Canada-ASEAN Business Council (CABC) Nicholas Stipp and members of the council, Hoan recalled his trip to Canada in 2023 during which various cooperation deals were signed between the two business communities.

Throughout meetings and discussions, Hoan found that potential of the bilateral trade and investment growth as well as collaboration across the above-mentioned areas have not been tapped to the fullest extent, suggesting the two sides enhance information sharing, strengthen connectivity between business communities while bolster the diplomatic relations.

Laying stress on HCM City’s strengths, he sai
d the Vietnamese southern economic hub contributes 22% to the country’s GDP and is home to nearly 400,000 enterprises with many startups.

Like many other developing urban areas, the city is facing such formidable challenges as traffic jam, inundation, environmental pollution and growth quality, he said, adding it is prioritising the development of and investment in new industries like semiconductor, electronics and renewable energy.

According to Hoan, the city has great demand for management experience, technologies and finance to roll out its projects for long-term development while Canadian enterprises have resources and want to expand investment in ASEAN. Therefore, both sides should hold more meetings to get a deeper insight into each other’s needs and aspirations towards signing of more specific cooperation agreements in the time ahead.

Stipp, for his part, held that Vietnamese and Canadian businesses boast enormous potential to collaborate in innovation, climate change response and sustainable energy
transition.

The Canadian business community has realised the positive development of HCM City over the past time and hailed its development orientations, he said, Canadian firms are applying new technologies into traditional production sectors to protect the environment, and want to cooperate with their HCM City peers in the areas, alongside with agriculture and timber processing.

The CABC members highlighted potential for bilateral cooperation in education, human resources training, scientific research, IT and cyber security.

Several Canadian investment funds have already set up their offices in Vietnam, hoping that they will become a bridge to connect Vietnamese firms to access global market while introducing foreign investors to Vietnam./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi: Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on March 27 hosted a reception for Thai Ambassador Nikorndej Balankura who came to bid farewell to the Vietnamese Government leader at the end of his tenure.

Congratulating the Thai diplomat on his successful tenure that helps develop the Vietnam – Thailand Strategic Partnership over the past time, Chinh expressed his hope that Nikorndej Balankura, in his new position, will continue making contributions to the cooperation between the two nations.

The PM thanked the Thai side for renovating relic sites dedicated to President Ho Chi Minh in Thailand, handling legal issues for Vietnamese expatriates, and creating favourable conditions for the building of the Vietnam town, the first of its kind in the world, in Thailand.

Vietnam looks forwards to visits to Vietnam by the Thai high-level leaders in the coming time, he said, urging the Thai side’s coordination to make meticulous preparation for the Thai PM’s official visit to Vietnam and the 4th Vietnam – Thailand Joint Cabi
net Meeting to discuss measures bolstering the sound relations and robust cooperation in various fields.

He suggested both sides push ahead implementation of necessary solutions to realise the target of 25 billion USD in trade revenue in a balanced fashion, stressing the Vietnamese Government encourages and facilitate Thai investment in the country.

Besides, he recommended both nations continue strengthen infrastructure connectivity, especially in transportation and e-commerce, as well as work together in climate change response, digital transformation, tourism and sports.

The two nations should continue coordination, give consultations and support each other at multilateral forums, maintain solidarity and promote ASEAN’s central roles, cooperate to develop the Mekong sub-region, and manage and sustainable use the water resources.

The Thai Ambassador, for his part, thanked competent agencies in Vietnam for helping him complete his mission, and spoke highly of Vietnam’s achievements over the past time.

He
affirmed that both nations hold huge cooperation potential, particularly in the field of trade and investment, adding Thailand wants to be a leading investor in Vietnam.

Describing Vietnam as his second homeland, he committed to continuing efforts to nurture the Vietnam – Thailand relations.

In a decade, two-way trade revenue increased from 10.4 billion USD in 2013 to nearly 19 billion USD in 2023. Particularly, the value reached 21.6 billion USD in 2022, exceeding the 20-billion-USD band mark for the first time.

Thailand ranks 9th among 144 countries and territories having investment in Vietnam as it has registered 13.7 billion USD to 715 projects so far./.

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