Former Canadian Ambassador to Vietnam David Devine. Photo: VNA

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Canada, David Devine, former Canadian Ambassador to Vietnam, mentioned the development in the relationship between the two countries over the past 50 years and prospects in the coming time.

Devine held many positions in his foreign affairs career and is an expert on international trade issues.

Assessing the achievements of the relationship between Vietnam and Canada over the past 50 years, Devine assessed that there have been exchanges in the political field, with high-level visits and exchanges in economy and investment, especially the signing of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

The two sides also have a lot of diplomatic activities and development assistance. Since 1990, Canada contributed nearly US$2 billion in aid in various forms to Vietnam. The two sides have activities in the field of military and strategic cooperation, education and academia.

In 2017, Vietnam and Canada agreed to establish a comprehensive partnership.

Devine said that Vietnam's growth in poverty reduction is remarkable, and Canada is proud to contribute a small part to that.

This allows Vietnam to become a strong member of the Southeast Asian community and a leader in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for political stability.

Therefore, the former Ambassador said that Vietnam will proudly look at the past 50 years when it grasped and solved problems in a methodical and strategic way.

Former Ambassador Devine shared that he learned many things during his time in Vietnam. That is how Vietnamese people interact with each other, how people coordinate and work together, patiently, and persistently to be able to reach the goal.

When looking back at Vietnam's growth target over the past 20 to 30 years, it is a phenomenon, not a coincidence but the result of tireless efforts. The Vietnamese government has a good direction for its economic policy and ensures that the economy is growing well and problems can be prevented.

According to former Ambassador Devine, the two countries can cooperate in a number of areas such as climate change. Many people think that climate change simply causes global warming, but the truth is much more than that. Extreme weather and natural disasters, such as flooding, landslides, and hurricanes have been linked to climate change.

It is important that Canada and Vietnam can work together to convince other countries, multilateral forums, and international organizations that climate change is a global threat.

Commenting on the potential for cooperation between the two countries, in bilateral relations as well as in international coordination, at multilateral forums, Devine said that what needs to be done is to expand the influence together to achieve more success for both parties.

He said that Canada can provide green technology and other strengths to Vietnam, helping Vietnam improve its technological capabilities, especially in the field of green technology, to open up opportunities for cooperation between the two sides.

Photo: VNA

Over the past 50 years, bilateral cooperation grew significantly. Canada's exports to Vietnam grew from US$600 million to nearly US$1 billion in 2022, representing an increase of about 25% to 30%.

Vietnam also always has a positive trade balance with Canada. The value of bilateral trade placed at around US$10 billion last year is impressive. Devine assessed that the two countries are having good economic cooperation.

According to the former Ambassador, a number of other areas are also important, such as development assistance. The two sides coordinated in the field of gender equality, and Vietnam has a fair and equal society. The United Nations' sustainable development goals have been identified by Vietnam, and the two countries will work together to further develop those goals.

The former Ambassador shared that he has seen a sharp increase in the number of Vietnamese students coming to Canada during his time as Ambassador. Every year, many international students come to Canada to study because Canada is a safe country, the education system is not too expensive, the training program is diverse and of good quality. Devine considers this an area of potential future cooperation.

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