Diplomacy contributes greatly to promoting international cooperation: Deputy PM
Hanoi (VNA) - In the period of “Doi Moi” (renewal) and international integration, diplomacy
has paved the way for and developing cooperative relationships between Vietnam and
other countries and territories worldwide, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister
Pham Binh Minh has said.
In a speech at a ceremony marking the 75th founding anniversary of Vietnam’s
diplomatic sector, in Hanoi on August 27, Vietnam’s top diplomat stressed that the
sector has made efforts to actively implement the strategic orientation of
proactive and active international integration.
It has helped open
up new markets and fields of cooperation, promote trade exchange, and attract foreign
investment and other resources for socio-economic development, thus contributing
to maintaining a peaceful, stable environment, safeguarding sovereignty and territorial
integrity, and improving the country’s position in the international arena, he said.
In particular, the sector always upholds its pioneering role in creating the most
favourable external environment for gaining and consolidating the country’s sovereignty
and independence and for constructing and safeguarding the nation.
Meanwhile, Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung, who is also General Secretary of the National ASEAN 2020 Committee, said Vietnam’s participation
in and its contributions to ASEAN’s development has contributed to increasingly
affirming the country’s role and position in the international arena.
Assessing the important benefits ASEAN brings to Vietnam, Dung said joining the
bloc has brought Vietnam opportunities to promote rapid and steady development,
expand relations with countries, regions, and important partners around the world,
and attract more external resources for national development and international integration.
Vietnam has become an active member of not only ASEAN but also the international
community, he affirmed.
The country has contributed significantly to building development orientations and
making main decisions and policies in the bloc, including the ASEAN Charter, the ASEAN
Community Vision 2025 and relevant master
plans, the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity, and the Initiative for ASEAN Integration
(IAI).
As ASEAN Chair in 2020, Vietnam has quickly decided to adjust the focuses of
the bloc in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, and coordinated with other ASEAN
members in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, considering this as its top priority
at present.
At the same time, the country has proactively proposed and coordinated efforts for
intra-bloc cooperation and between ASEAN and its partners.
According to Deputy Foreign Minister and
Chairman of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs (COVA) Dang Minh
Khoi, OV affairs have become a pillar of Vietnam’s diplomatic sector.
As many as 5.3 million Vietnamese people are
living in more than 130 countries and territories worldwide, of which more than
500,000 have university degrees or higher and many are engineers and leading experts
in the fields of science and technology, economics, and finance. Some have joined
political systems in other countries.
Overseas Vietnamese have also invested nearly 4 billion USD in more than 3,000 investment
and business projects in Vietnam, contributing to creating jobs, promoting vocational
training and technology transfer, and bolstering socio-economic development, he
said.
He went on to say that Vietnamese communities abroad have proactively joined the COVA and relevant agencies in implementing cultural diplomacy policies in many
different forms.
With the practical and effective support of COVA, the Vietnamese language learning
and teaching movement has been expanding across continents, contributing to raising
expats’ awareness about the importance of maintaining the Vietnamese language, cultural
identity, and national traditions, he said.
He added that Vietnamese agencies, sectors, and organisations have adopted many
measures to support Vietnamese communities abroad in the context of the ongoing
spread of COVID-19, which has caused financial and employment difficulties for
overseas Vietnamese.
The work of the diplomatic sector has contributed to making Vietnam a friend
and a reliable and responsible partner of the international community, contributing
to the country’s strong and prosperous development./.