President of the National Assembly Tran Thanh Man poses for a group photo with delegation chiefs from various countries during IPU-152. (Source: VNA)
At the invitation of the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Tulia Ackson and the Secretary-General of the IPU Martin Chungong, on behalf of the Party leaders and the State, President of the National Assembly Tran Thanh Man and his wife, accompanied by a high-level Vietnamese delegation, participated in the 152nd IPU General Assembly in Istanbul (Turkey), engaged in several bilateral activities in Turkey, and made an official visit to the Italian Republic from April 11 to 17.
Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Dang Hoang Giang granted an interview to the press on the outcomes of the working visit of the President of the National Assembly Tran Thanh Man.
On this occasion, the Vice Minister was asked about the main outcomes of the 152nd IPU General Assembly and the concrete contributions of the Vietnamese delegation to the forum.
The 152nd IPU General Assembly achieved numerous significant results thanks to the strong participation of parliamentary leaders from various countries and representatives of many international organizations in a complex global context.
The Assembly reaffirmed the importance of the IPU as a framework for parliaments to strengthen dialogue, promote consensus, and cooperation to consolidate peace, the rule of law, and multilateralism.
Numerous important resolutions were adopted on the roles of parliaments in conflict prevention and resolution, promoting fair trade, combating protectionism, and enhancing financial transparency. The General Assembly also made efforts to improve various IPU mechanisms.
The General Assembly promptly addressed urgent issues, particularly focusing on strengthening coordination between parliaments to maintain ceasefire and promote peace consolidation. This further highlighted the significant role of parliamentary diplomacy in fostering dialogue, deepening understanding, and enhancing international cooperation.
The Vietnamese delegation, led by President of the National Assembly Tran Thanh Man, actively and responsibly participated, making substantial contributions to the overall success of the General Assembly.
During the general debate, President of the National Assembly presented three proposals to enhance strategic cooperation between parliaments: promoting dialogue and building trust; developing legal frameworks and ensuring follow-up on international commitments; and ensuring fair and equitable law enforcement. He also highlighted Vietnam’s achievements after forty years of Doi Moi (Renovation) and the development targets for the new era set by the 14th Party Congress and the 16th National Assembly.
In addition to activities at the IPU, the Vietnamese delegation actively joined sessions of the IPU Executive Committee, IPU Standing Committees, Women Parliamentarians Forum, Young Parliamentarians Forum, Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments, Asia-Pacific Geopolitical Group (APG), ASEAN+3 Group, Hanoi Convention seminar on cybercrime, and directly contributed to the drafting of many General Assembly documents.
During the 152nd IPU General Assembly, Vietnam assumed the chairmanship of the ASEAN+3 group for the upcoming 153rd IPU General Assembly. Vietnam introduced an initiative aimed at strengthening the resilience and strategic autonomy of its economy, emphasizing the role of parliaments in refining legal frameworks, supporting businesses, and advancing citizens’ interests.
Vietnam’s message and proposals were well-received, positively evaluated, and approved by many member parliaments and delegates, further affirming Vietnam’s active and responsible partnership in promoting parliamentary cooperation and multilateralism.
President of the National Assembly held numerous bilateral meetings with parliamentary leaders of other countries, strengthening political trust and promoting cooperation in various areas such as economy, trade, investment, science, technology, innovation, digital transformation, defense, and security.
Partners commended the success of the 14th Party Congress and the elections of the 16th National Assembly, congratulating the newly elected Party and State leaders and praising Vietnam’s contributions to multilateral mechanisms, especially the IPU. They expressed respect for Vietnam and a desire to continue enhancing bilateral cooperation overall and with the Vietnamese National Assembly in particular.
Minister, could you summarize the major outcomes of the recent trip of the President of the National Assembly to Italy and Turkey? What measures will Vietnam and its partner countries prioritize in the coming months to further strengthen their bilateral relations?
In addition to activities at the IPU, this event marks a significant step in implementing the foreign policy directions of the 14th Party Congress. It reflects Vietnam’s consistent policy to enhance and deepen its relations with key partners, notably European and Middle Eastern countries, contributing to creating a favorable international environment and gaining support from international friends and external resources to achieve the country’s development goals in this new era. Here are some notable results:
Firstly, there was an increased level of political trust. This visit signaled a significant development, enhancing relations between Vietnam and the two countries for the upcoming period. Leaders of state, National Assembly, and local authorities from both countries attached special importance to this visit. Italy particularly reaffirmed that Vietnam was a reliable partner with strong cooperation potential, committing to continue supporting Vietnam in enhancing relations with the European Union (EU). Turkey expressed its willingness to enhance bilateral relations, considering Vietnam as an important partner in the Asia-Pacific region.
These visits qualitatively strengthened cooperation between legislative bodies of both countries. The President of the Vietnamese National Assembly and the Presidents of the Italian and Turkish parliaments committed to maintaining regular exchanges between leaders and parliamentary bodies of both countries to deepen mutual understanding, share legislative experiences, improve institutions, and coordinate the implementation of agreements and commitments in all areas.
Secondly, the focus of this trip on the economy, trade, and investment brought about a significant qualitative change. Italy agreed that both parties should maximize the benefits of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), enhancing connectivity between Vietnam and the EU. Italy continues to support the ratification of the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) by EU countries, as well as the removal of the Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing ban on Vietnamese seafood products. Regarding Turkey, both sides committed to promoting a more balanced trade development and exploring the possibility of initiating an FTA to fully leverage the complementarity of their economies and the strategic position of each country in the region.
Activities such as promotion and networking, including seminars that brought together hundreds of businesses, opened up numerous concrete cooperation prospects. On this occasion, several ministries and agencies signed agreement protocols in related cooperation areas.
Thirdly, this visit injected new momentum into cooperation in many potential areas such as defense and security, education and training, culture and people-to-people exchanges, while expanding into new sectors like innovation, artificial intelligence, ecological transition, and energy transition. With Italy, both parties agreed to consider science, technology, and innovation as priority pillars of cooperation for the future; with Turkey, cooperation in industry, infrastructure, logistics, and tourism was identified as having strong potential.
During this visit, the meeting between the President of the National Assembly, the Pope, and the Vatican Prefect was an event of critical importance. In these talks, both sides praised the significant and concrete progress achieved in the Vietnam-Holy See relations, from high-level meetings between the two countries’ top officials to the establishment of the Permanent Representational Office of the Holy See in Vietnam, particularly the positive development of the religious life of the Vietnamese Catholic community, as well as the effective maintenance of exchange mechanisms and the proper functioning of the Joint Working Group.
Both parties will continue to pay close attention to strengthening mutual trust and understanding, working towards the establishment of comprehensive diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the Holy See, and a visit by the Pope to Vietnam at the invitation of Secretary-General and President To Lam.
In the coming period, Vietnamese ministries, sectors, and functional agencies will closely coordinate with their counterparts to materialize and effectively implement concluded agreements, enhance delegation exchanges at all levels, efficiently use existing cooperation mechanisms, and promote cooperation in new strategic areas such as ecological transition, digital transformation, science, technology, and innovation.
The parties will also strengthen their coordination within regional and international forums, further enhancing the substantive, effective, and sustainable relations between Vietnam and its development partners for the benefit of both countries’ populations, as well as for peace, stability, and common development.
Thank you very much, Minister! Source: https://baoquocte.vn/chuyen…
