Day: December 16, 2022

The Vietnam Embassy in Venezuela and a local university on December 14 celebrated the 78th founding anniversary of the Vietnam People’s Army (VPA) (December 22, 1944 – 2022) and the 33rd All People’s Defence Festival (December 22, 1989 – 2022).

 

At the event taking place at the National Experimental University of the Armed Forces (UNEFA), Vietnamese Ambassador to Venezuela Le Viet Duyen reviewed the developments of the army and its contributions to Vietnam’s national construction and defense.

 

In peacetime, Vietnam’s all-people national defense contributes to preserving peace for national development.

 

The army also promotes defense diplomacy in co-operation activities with neighbouring countries, ASEAN member countries, and others.

 

In particular, in efforts to contribute to the world’s common issues, Vietnam has sent forces to UN peacekeeping missions in African countries with 512 officers, including 75 female ones, Duyen said.

 

Attending the event, UNEFA chief inspector Major General Ramon Balza Liota expressed his admiration for the heroic and brave Vietnamese people in the struggle to defend national independence, unification, construction, and development of the country.

 

He said the celebration of anniversary in Venezuela helps boost the friendship between the two peoples, contributing to promoting the comprehensive, friendship, and traditional partnership between the two countries./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Bui Quang Huy was re-elected First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union (HCYU) at the closing session of the 12th National Congress of the HCYU on December 16.

 

At the beginning of the closing session, the 12th Central Committee, its standing board and secretariat in the 2022-2027 tenure made their debut.

 

The HCYU Central Committee in the 12th tenure has 144 members, who were elected during the December 15 session. The committee then elected a 33-member standing board, a six-member secretariat, and the First Secretary.

 

On behalf of the 12th HCYU Central Committee, First Secretary Huy pledged to work with high responsibility to concretise and realise all ideas and views set at the 12th Congress.

 

Huy, born 1977, is an alternate member of the 13th Party Central Committee and head of the National Committee on Youth of Vietnam.

 

He was the standing secretary of the HCYU Central Committee in the 10th tenure, and the First Secretary in the 11th tenure./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

Vietnam, on behalf of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), affirmed the bloc’s priority and commitment in promoting multilateralism at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC)’s recent open debate on a new orientation for reformed multilateralism.

 

In his speech, Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, highlighted ASEAN’s priority and commitment to the respect and promotion of multilateralism for a more peaceful, prosperous, and fair world. The bloc recognises a need for reformed multilateralism in response to today’s challenges, he added.

 

The diplomat emphasised the common view of ASEAN that reforming multilateralism must be accompanied by a commitment to pursue a multilateral approach, in accordance with international law and the UN Charter, to promote common interests, create a favourable environment for dialogue and cooperation, and avoid actions that intensify tension.

 

ASEAN supports reforming the Security Council, enhancing representation, democracy, transparency, effectiveness, and efficiency, Giang said.

 

He held that the voice of the developing countries and regional organisations, including ASEAN, need to be heard more in the global decision-making process.

 

The ambassador’s speech was also the first ASEAN joint one at the UNSC on this topic, made at the proposal by Vietnam.

 

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General António Guterres told the function that strengthening multilateralism is his highest priority since the start of his term of office, and that his report Our Common Agenda and the process it initiated are aimed at reinvigorating multilateralism to deal with today’s interconnected threats.

 

Csaba Kőrösi (Hungary), President of the UN General Assembly, underscored a need for the international community to closely cooperate in finding a multilateral solution in accordance with the UN Charter and international law.

 

Participating UN member countries all expressed their support for multilateralism, in which the UN plays a central role. They also shared views on remaining challenges and limitations, and proposed measures to reforming multilateralism more effectively./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s official visits to Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Belgium, and attendance in the ASEAN – EU Commemorative Summit were highly successful, Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son told the media.

 

In an interview granted to the press, Minister Son said the tour from December 9 to 15 took place amid flourishing relations between Vietnam and the three European countries. This was the first visit to Luxembourg by a high-ranking leader of Vietnam in 20 years and the first high-level delegation exchange with the Netherlands in three years.

 

During the visits of the Vietnamese PM, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Belgium, which have set up comprehensive partnerships and strategic partnerships in climate change and sustainable agriculture with Vietnam, have shown the importance they attach to the stature and role of the Southeast Asian nation, along with their determination to comprehensively step up cooperation.

 

During the trip, PM Chinh met with most senior leaders of the three countries’ governments, parliaments, and royal families, who highly valued Vietnam’s socio-economic achievements and growing stature in the world.

 

They affirmed the wish to work with Vietnam in promoting cooperative ties in an increasingly substantive and effective manner, sustainably developing the economies after the pandemic, effectively dealing with international issues, and responding to global challenges, according to Son.

 

Prime Minister’s tour of Europe highly successful: Foreign Minister hinh anh 2

 

PM Pham Minh Chinh (centre) meets President of the Senate Jan Anthonie Bruijn (left) and Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands Vera Bergkamp (right) on December 12. (Photo: VNA)

 

He noted that in each of the three European countries, PM Chinh chaired business forums and had meetings with leaders of regions and major enterprises. Up to 30 cooperation agreements were signed between ministries, sectors, research institutes, and businesses of Vietnam and the three nations.

 

Vietnam and the three European countries agreed to work closely and support each other at international forums and organisations such as the ASEAN – EU cooperation framework, the Asia – Europe Meeting (ASEM), and the United Nations, especially when Vietnam, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Belgium are members of the UN Human Rights Council, so as to contribute to regional and global peace, security, cooperation, and sustainable development.

 

Regarding the East Sea issue, leaders of the three European countries affirmed their support for the maintenance of security, safety, and freedom of navigation and overflight in the region; the settlement of disputes by peaceful means on the basis of international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS); and the negotiations on an equitable, substantive, and effective code of conduct (COC) in the East Sea between ASEAN and China, the official went on.

 

Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Belgium also pledged to assist Vietnam in terms of finance, technology, human resources training, and regulation perfection to boost the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, energy transition, and sustainable development.

 

Son said PM Chinh’s official visits to the three European countries reaped all-round successes and were important milestones in Vietnam’s relations with the countries.

 

Prime Minister’s tour of Europe highly successful: Foreign Minister hinh anh 3

 

PM Pham Minh Chinh (behind, third from left) and Minister-President of Belgium’s Flanders region Jan Jambon (behind, third, from right) witness of the signing of a letter of intention on cooperation between Vinfast and Facil. (Photo: VNA)

 

With regard to the commemorative summit marking the 45th anniversary of ASEAN – EU relations, he noted it was the first time ASEAN leaders had met with all the leaders of EU member nations, which demonstrated that both sides highly treasure and are strongly committed to fostering their partnership. It was also a good opportunity for the two sides’ leaders to identify important orientations for developing ASEAN – EU ties more strongly in the time to come.

 

An outstanding outcome was that the summit issued a joint statement which emphasised that ASEAN and the EU attach importance to each other’s role and standing; pledge to further solidify their strategic partnership on the basis of international law and equitable and mutually beneficial cooperation; and will bolster cooperation in economy, trade, supply chain stabilisation, maritime security, connectivity, healthcare capacity building, digital transformation, natural disaster management, environmental protection, climate change response, energy transition, and green and sustainable development, according to Minister Son.

 

The two sides also agreed to enhance multilateral cooperation, share common values and interests, and promote international law, and resolve regional and global challenges.

 

They stressed the importance of the maintenance of peace, stability, security, safety, and freedom of navigation and overflight in the East Sea, as well as the settlement of disputes by peaceful means. They appealed for the full implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and building of an effective and substantive COC that matches international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS, he noted.

 

At the summit, the Vietnamese delegation led by PM Chinh proactively and actively made important and responsible contributions to the event’s success, in terms of both summit preparations, discussions, and document drafting, the official added./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hau Giang Bioenergy Joint Stock Company (HBE) held a groundbreaking ceremony for a biomass power plant using rice husk as fuel with a total investment of 875 billion VND (36.5 million USD) in the Mekong Delta province of Hau Giang on December 15.

 

Truong Ngoc Thuy Trang, director of HBE, said that the Hau Giang Biomass Power Plant Project, with a capacity of 2×10 MW, is expected to be completed and put into use in the fourth quarter of 2024.

 

When put into operation, the plant in Thuan An ward, Long My town would be a grid-connected biomass power plant, contributing to diversifying power generation sources and ensuring energy security in the province in particular and the Mekong Delta region in general, said Trang.

 

In addition, the project will provide about 125 GWh per year of electricity, create jobs for workers, and contribute to the provincial socio-economic development with estimated revenue at about 200 billion VND per year./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh and Executive Vice Chairwoman of People’s Government of China’s Guangxi Cai Lixin recently discussed measures to facilitate customs clearance of goods via border gates of the two countries.

 

At the online conference assessing the implementation of the 2021-2023 action plan between the two sides held on December 14, the two officials said that it is a good chance to exchange measures and orientations for future cooperation in order to realise the common perception of the two countries’ high-ranking leaders after the recently successful China visit by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong; and to discuss solutions to ensure smooth customs clearance and prevent congestion of goods at border gates between Vietnam and Guangxi before, during and after the Lunar New Year 2023.

 

Khanh asked for a closer cooperation between Guangxi and Vietnam’s border localities to improve the efficiency of customs clearance at border gates to avoid the recurrence of congestions like in late 2021.

 

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Executive Vice Chairwoman of People’s Government of China’s Guangxi Cai Lixin (C) (Photo: VNA)

 

Deputy Minister Khanh proposed the resumption of customs clearance at Coc Nam-Nonghuai border gate pairs, as well as the restoration of operations of other pairs such as Binh Nghi-Ping Erguan, and Hoanh Mo-Dongzhong.

 

He also suggested the two sides intensify cooperation to improve the capacity of Vietnam’s railway transport to China through Guangxi.

 

Cai Lixin said that the Guangxi government has established a specialised committee to support the customs clearance of Vietnamese agricultural products in the year-end peak season.

 

In addition, authorities of Guangxi are also urgently studying the resumption of customs clearance at eligible border gates to ease pressure on operating ones./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency