Upcoming diplomatic conferences to strengthen Vietnam’s international standing

Beijing (VNA) – The 33rd Diplomatic Conference and the 22nd National Conference on External Affairs will help foster a common understanding, remove institutional bottlenecks, and enhance coordination among ministries, agencies, localities and Vietnam's overseas representative missions, according to Vietnamese Ambassador to China Pham Thanh Binh.

In an interview with the Vietnam News Agency ahead of the two events, the ambassador said the conferences would provide an opportunity for the diplomatic sector to review achievements in foreign affairs and local external relations, identify shortcomings, and draw lessons from recent years.

They will also serve as a platform to forge a shared understanding, renew thinking and approaches, and ensure the diplomatic service is well equipped to meet increasingly demanding tasks. Particular emphasis will be placed on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' action programme to concretise the Politburo's Resolution No. 06-NQ/TW on Vietnam's foreign policy in the new era. Binh noted that these events are unfolding amid unprecedented shifts in the global landscape, carrying significant impacts on development and strategic security. They’re also the first to be organised since the 14th National Party Congress, which emphasised foreign affairs and international integration as crucial and regular tasks in Vietnam’s new stage of growth.

The conferences are set to introduce fresh ideas in Vietnam’s foreign relations, focusing on strategic autonomy, self-strengthening, and developing foreign relations in the country’s new era, matching its historical stature, cultural heritage, and rising position on the global stage.

These events follow a major shake-up in Vietnam's external affairs setup, which saw the consolidation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Party Central Committee's Commission for External Relations, and the transfer of some duties from the National Assembly's Committee for External Relations to the ministry.

They will also be the first such conferences since the establishment of the Central Steering Committee for Foreign Affairs and International Integration.

The ambassador noted that the 33rd Diplomatic Conference focuses on promoting Vietnam’s pioneering role and fulfilling the crucial and regular mission of its foreign affairs in the new era. Meanwhile, the 22nd national conference aims to enhance local external relations and tap into international resources for development. Discussions under these themes will centre on clarifying the role of foreign affairs in supporting national goals, such as achieving double-digit economic growth, proactively creating strategic opportunities, and bolstering strategic autonomy and self-strengthening.

This will help Vietnam's foreign affairs maintain strategic proactiveness, respond to emerging challenges, seize new opportunities, address remaining bottlenecks in the work, and continue to consolidate and elevate the country's standing on the international stage, Binh said.

He stressed that the 22nd national conference is also expected to build consensus on the direction and implementation of local external relations in the new period.

Given the significance of the two events, the diplomat expressed confidence that they would mark an important milestone, bringing about meaningful and substantive changes in both the thinking and actions of Vietnam's diplomatic service./.