President Vo Van Thuong highly valued the diplomatic sector’s contributions to national defence while attending a conference held in Hanoi on April 6 to review the 10-year implementation of the Party Central Committee’s resolution on the strategy for safeguarding the Fatherland in the new context.

Addressing the event, Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son said that bringing into play its pioneering role, the diplomatic sector, together with defence, security and other forces, has successfully carried out the resolution, issued at the eighth session of the 11th-tenure Party Central Committee in October 2013.

Vietnam’s relations with partners have become increasingly substantive and stable, substantially helping to create and maintain a peaceful and stable environment for national development; firmly defend national independence, sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity; and defeat all sabotage plots taking advantage of democracy, human rights, and ethnic and religious affairs.

Vietnam’s relations with partners have become increasingly substantive and stable,. Photo: VNA

The implementation of the Fatherland safeguarding strategy has helped boost comprehensive and intensive integration into the world, elevate multilateral diplomacy, and increase Vietnam’s presence at international forums and organisations to promote the country’s stature and reputation in the world. The pillars of the Party’s diplomacy, the State’s diplomacy, and people’s diplomacy have been coordinated closely, harmoniously, and effectively, according to the minister.

Addressing the event, President Vo Van Thuong, head of the steering committee for the review of the resolution implementation, highly valued diplomatic achievements which have greatly contributed to national construction and safeguarding, especially in helping maintain a peaceful and stable environment for developing the country, and protecting independence, sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity.

He pointed out that as the international situation is changing complicatedly, posing new issues in external affairs and national safeguarding, the Foreign Ministry needs to continue grasping and implementing the orientations set in the Party’s resolution as well as major directions issued by the Party.

Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son

He asked the ministry to keep upholding the pioneering role of diplomacy in protecting the Fatherland early and from afar; thoroughly grasp Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s directions about the characteristics of Vietnam’s diplomacy; and further intensify relations with other countries and partners, reinforce political trust while guaranteeing national interests.

The State leader also requested the diplomatic sector to step up economic diplomacy and continue working closely with defence, security, other sectors, and all-level authorities to increase research and provide forecasting and strategic advice in response to new requirements of national defence in the new context.

78-year journey filled with glorious milestones

In the early days, under the sound leadership of the Party and President Ho Chi Minh, Vietnamese diplomacy made important contribution to protecting the revolutionary government.

Strategies creatively applied by the Party and President Ho Chi Minh during this period, were “Firm in objectives, flexible in strategies and tactics,” creating and taking full advantage of opportunities, winning people's hearts with reason and justice, etc., which have become precious lessons on flexibility and sensitivity in Vietnamese revolution’s foreign behavior.

During the two resistance wars for national liberation and the course of national construction, the diplomatic front closely coordinated with political and military ones, enlisted the great support of the international community, and combined national strength with the power of the times, to gradually reach diplomatic milestones in the nation’s history as well as in the struggle of people in the world for peace, independence, democracy, and justice, including the negotiations and signing of the Geneva Agreement in 1954 and the Paris Peace Accords in 1973. These victories opened favorable opportunities for national reunification.

After the country’s reunification, implementing the Party’s renewal policy on external affairs, over the past 40 years, Vietnamese diplomacy has gained profound achievements. The diplomatic sector has step by step broken the sanctions and embargoes and taken the lead in establishing relations with many countries in the world, opening a new period for the country to develop, maintain peace and stability, firmly safeguarding national independence and sovereignty while mobilizing more external resources to enhance socio-economic development potential and raise the country’s position and prestige in the international arena.

Since the 13th tenure of the Party Central Committee, the diplomatic sector has gradually concretized, implemented the foreign policy guidelines of the 13th National Party Congress in a synchronous, creative and effective manner, and obtained significant achievements. The country has strengthened relations with major and neighboring countries, partners and traditional friends in a substantive and effective way.

Over the past two years, regardless of hardships posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Vietnam has successfully organized more than 170 high-level external activities, including more than 30 visits of high-ranking leaders. Up to now, the country has set up diplomatic ties with 192 countries around the world, and enjoyed economic-commercial partnerships with more than 230 countries and territories.

The expanding and deepening network of external relations has opened up many markets, attracted many sources of capital, technology and knowledge to speed up national industrialization and modernization. In addition, economic diplomacy has made direct and important contribution to COVID-19 prevention and control, as well as the recovery and development of society and economy. The cultural and information diplomacy, overseas Vietnamese work, and citizen protection has seen positive outcomes.

As a reliable partner and an active and responsible member of the international community, Vietnam’s position and prestige have been constantly consolidated and enhanced. Vietnam has taken on and fulfilled a number of international responsibilities, including Chairman of ASEAN 2020, non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council in the 2020-2021 period, Vice President of the United Nations General Assembly's 77th session, member of the United Nations Human Rights Council for the 2023-2025 tenure and the International Law Commission for the 2023-2027 period, to name but a few.

Along with the relevant behaviors and reasonable stance on various multilateral forums, the diplomatic sector has helped improve the country's image as an independent, self-reliant, innovative, peace-loving, trustworthy, sincere and responsible member in the international community.

The above-mentioned achievements have contributed to the wealth, potential, position and international prestige that our country has never had before. They affirm the correct foreign policy of the Party and State and are the crystallization of the efforts of the whole Party, military, people, the close collaboration among diplomatic pillars, forces and sectors at all levels, the active participation of the whole political system, including the persistent efforts and contributions of Vietnam's diplomacy over the past 78 years.

Determined to build a modern, comprehensive and strong diplomatic sector

Apart from obtained achievements, the diplomatic sector has also admitted that there still exist several shortcomings and weaknesses that need addressing in the time to come.

In order to meet the development requirements of the country as well as the diplomatic sector in the new situation, the sector has renovated itself; synchronously and effectively implemented external affairs tasks; promoted the glorious traditions of Vietnam’s diplomacy; creatively applied Ho Chi Minh's thought on diplomacy; strictly followed the foreign policy of the 13th National Party Congress; and pro-actively sought new ways, new directions, new fields to build a modern, comprehensive and strong diplomatic sector.

Following Uncle Ho’s teachings, the sector has taken the Party, the Fatherland and people as a driving force for development, the economic diplomacy has taken people, localities and enterprises as a service-centered business.

Especially, the sector will focus on building a contingent of diplomatic cadres with professional capability, firm political stance, positive thinking, and more. Each diplomat will be absolutely loyal to the Party and resolutely fight against hostile forces' schemes as well as prevent manifestations of “self-evolution” and “self-transformation.”

Looking back upon the past 78-year journey, generations of diplomatic cadres have expressed their infinite gratitude to late President Ho Chi Minh, the Party and State’s leaders who had exerted utmost efforts to build and cultivate Vietnam's revolutionary diplomacy. Upholding these glorious traditions, the diplomatic sector, under the leadership of the Party, is determined to build a modern, comprehensive and strong diplomacy, contributing to successfully completing the resolutions and foreign policy guidelines of the 13th National Party Congress.