Significant accomplishments recorded in Vietnam-US relations

Since the normalisation of their relations, Vietnam and the US have together achieved significant accomplishments, President of the Vietnam-US Friendship Association in Ho Chi Minh City Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong has affirmed at a July 12 gathering to mark the 247th anniversary of the US Independence Day (July 4, 1776-2023) in the southern Vietnamese metropolis.

In her remarks, Phuong said Vietnam is currently one of the US’s leading trade partners in the region, while the US has invested billions of dollars in addressing the Agent Orange contamination and other remaining war legacy issues in Vietnam.

These demonstrate that with perseverance and trust, the countries have truly become comprehensive partners, she stated.

Natella Svistunova, Cultural Attaché at the US Consulate General in HCM City, believed that the commemoration of Independence Day is also an occasion to reflect on the shared values and foundations of the nations’ bilateral relationship and collaboration in addressing global issues that impact the existence and development of both in the future, cited VNA.

President of the Vietnam-US Friendship Association in Ho Chi Minh City Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong speaks at the get-together. (Photo: VNA)

According to the diplomat, in recent times, Vietnam and the US have worked together to implement solutions to minimise the impact of climate change, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and boost the development of renewable energy. In addition, their cooperation in healthcare, education, and security have been strengthened, with joint works in transnational crime prevention achieving encouraging results.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the sides’ comprehensive partnership, which has been highlighted by the official visit of US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to Vietnam in April and the groundbreaking of the new US Embassy in Vietnam.

Vietnamese and Malaysian audit agencies seek stronger co-operation

Dang The Vinh, deputy state auditor general, held a meeting with Malaysian Auditor-General Datuk Wan Suraya Wan Mohd Radzi in Putrajaya on July 11, as part of a working visit to Malaysia from July 9 to July 12.

During the course of the working session, the Vietnamese official applauded the fruitful co-operation between both nations’ audit agencies over recent times, expressing a desire to expand bilateral ties moving forward.

Vinh thanked the Malaysian audit agency for its support given to its Vietnamese counterpart in joining multilateral organisations such as the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), the Asian Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (ASOSAI), and the ASEAN Supreme Audit Institutions (ASEANSAI).

Photo: VNA

In response, Suraya congratulated the nation on its achievements in socio-economic development, success in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic, and efforts to re-open the economy following the pandemic.

She went on to affirm the State Audit Office of Malaysia’s readiness to discuss with the State Audit of Vietnam (SAV) about areas where it boasts extensive experience, such as training, information technology, and operation audit.

The SAV delegation engaged in discussions and shared its experience in applying information technology in audit activities, as well as digitising data and connecting with national databases or central agencies, according to VOV.

During the 2009 the 2019 period, SAV dispatched officials in order to engage in training courses on auditing operations and information technology within the Malaysian Technical Cooperation Programme (MTCP) funded by the Malaysian Government.

Within the multilateral framework, the two institutions have consistently supported and closely co-ordinated on the ASOSAI and ASEANSAI platforms. They jointly and successfully hosted the 14th ASOSAI Assembly back in 2018, with the Malaysian side also supporting SAV in successfully hosting the virtual 15th ASOSAI Assembly in 2021.

The two are among the four founding members of ASEANSAI, a forum that seeks to promote good governance within the Southeast Asian region.

Honorary Consulate Office of Vietnam in Dublin inaugurated

The Vietnamese Embassy in the UK held a ceremony on July 11 to inaugurate the Honorary Consulate Office of Vietnam in Dublin, the Republic of Ireland.

Earlier, in May, Patrick Gerard McKillen, a renowned Irish businessman with many years of attachment with Vietnam, was appointed as the first Honorary Consul of Vietnam in Dublin.

In his opening speech at the inauguration ceremony, Vietnamese Ambassador to the UK and the Republic of Ireland Nguyen Hoang Long believed that the opening of the Honorary Consulate Office was an important step towards further enhancing the effectiveness of political, trade, investment, educational, scientific, and technological relations between Vietnam and the Republic of Ireland, helping to maintain and deepen the friendship between their people.

The bilateral trade, investment, and people-to-people exchanges have been on the rise. The Republic of Ireland provided about 5.6 million EUR in ODA for Vietnam in 2021, and around 6.3 million EUR in 2022. There is a growing number of Vietnamese students interested in pursuing higher education in the European nation, reported VNA.

Vietnamese Ambassador to the UK and the Republic of Ireland Nguyen Hoang Long (second from right), Minister of State at the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs Sean Fleming (centre), and first Honorary Consul of Vietnam in Dublin Patrick Gerard McKillen (second from left) cut the symbolic ribbon to inaugurate the Honorary Consulate Office. (Photo: VNA)

Sean Fleming, Minister of State at the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs, said over the past 27 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two nations have cooperated closely and achieved many accomplishments. The Republic of Ireland always considers Vietnam an important partner in Asia, he affirmed.

In 2022, Vietnam-Ireland trade exceeded 985 million EUR, and Ireland hopes to see this trend continue developing and to capitalise on potential to strengthen the bilateral commercial ties. Fleming emphasised that the inauguration of the Honorary Consulate Office would be an important milestone to consolidate and further promote the relationship.

Honorary Consul Patrick Gerard McKillen expressed his honor to hold the post, committing to spare no efforts in carring out functions and tasks assigned to the consulate.

The office is set to carry out citizen protection affairs, support the Vietnamese community in the Republic of Ireland, enhance the introduction and promotion of Vietnam and its people in Dublin in particular and the Republic of Ireland in general, helping to foster the bilateral cooperation in multiple fields.

On this occasion, Long also had a meeting with representatives of the Vietnamese expatriate community in the Republic of Ireland, which consists of about 5,000 people, and visited Minh Tam Pagoda – the first Vietnamese temple in the country, which was inaugurated in May this year.

Vietnam urges promoting the role of ASEAN-led mechanisms

Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son shared his view on the urgency of enhancing the role of ASEAN-led mechanisms, such as the East Asia Summit (EAS) and the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), during a retreat held on July 12 in Jakarta as part of the ongoing 56th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM-56) and related meetings.

The purpose of the retreat is to discuss the international and regional situation, alongside orientations for the mechanisms founded by the bloc.

As part of his speech, Minister Son asked the bloc to guarantee the mechanisms’ goals, principles, openness, and inclusiveness on the basis of a balanced and objective approach to meet the legitimate interests of all relevant parties.

He therefore voiced support for the regional bloc to boost relations with partners and encourage the participation of and contributions by partners in the region to help it build the community whilst together responding to common challenges.

Partners also need to respect the centrality of ASEAN in terms of both words and actions, while joining ASEAN in building up trust, narrowing differences, and promoting dialogue and sincere co-operation, he went on to say.

The Vietnamese diplomat shared the bloc’s principled stance on international and regional issues, expressed support for the bloc to help Myanmar seek solutions, thereby affirming the value of the Five-Point Consensus (5PC) and hailing efforts made by the ASEAN Chair and the Special Envoy. He stressed that the solution to the Myanmar issue must be decided by the country.

At the retreat (Photo: VNA)

Regarding the South China Sea issue, FM Son underscored the importance of ensuring a favourable environment for the negotiation on a code of conduct (COC) in the waters. He therefore called on ASEAN to remain steadfast in its principled stance, uphold international law and the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), whilst together building the South China Sea into a sea of peace and co-operation.

At the retreat, ministers shared views on the uncertain and complicated situation filled with latent risks at present, especially the strategic competition among superpowers, transnational security issues, and complex developments in many hot spots. Amid this context, the most important thing for the bloc is to sustain solidarity, actively consult to seek appropriate response modalities, and maintain a balanced and harmonious approach in external relations.

They emphasised the importance of complying with the common principles, standards, and values outlined in documents such as the ASEAN Charter, the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC), the 1982 UNCLOS, and the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP).

Participants also discussed directions for enhancing the bloc’s centrality in the regional architecture by improving the efficiency of ASEAN-led mechanisms, thereby allowing them to live up to their original goals and development potential.

They affirmed ASEAN’s wish to expand and intensify relations with partners, stressing that the participation of partners in the region must be based on respect for ASEAN’s centrality, win-win co-operation, and contributions to the building of an open, transparent, inclusive, and rules-based regional architecture.

Regarding international and regional issues of shared interest, ministers voiced concerns about the ongoing complex situation in Myanmar. They recommended that ASEAN sustain solidarity, bring into play its centrality in helping the country, and guarantee its image and reputation, cited VOV.

The value of the 5PC and the ASEAN leaders’ 2022 decision on the 5PC implementation remains intact, and there are still the documents orienting the bloc’s efforts, officials said, expressing support for efforts made by the ASEAN Chair and the Special Envoy to continue their constructive dialogue with Myanmar and persistently help the country seek feasible and durable solutions.

The ministers also agreed that ASEAN should actively increase humanitarian assistance for Myanmar, particularly via the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management.

At the event, they reaffirmed the bloc’s principled stance on the East Sea issue and pledged to fully and effectively carry out the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), as well as to work towards a substantive and effective COC that matches international law, including UNCLOS.

The retreat also called on partners to respect ASEAN’s centrality and stance, especially on the issues related to regional peace, security, and stability.

Vietnam among world’s top 10 welcoming countries

InterNations, a website of the largest global community for people living abroad has placed the nation in ninth position on its list of the 10 most welcoming countries in the world.

With the country coming in ninth place, it is obvious that expats feel welcome when spending time in Vietnam, according to InterNations’ survey.

The friendliness shown towards foreign residents, rated positively by 83%, generally has a positive impact on expats’ well-being. A Belgian expat, for instance, considers the country to be “less stressful than many other places, as people smile naturally”, the website reported.

InterNations’ survey interviewed a total of 12,000 expats living in 174 countries around the world. Among the 10 most welcoming countries are five Asian countries, including two in the Southeast Asian region.

The remaining five places go to North Central America, South America, and Europe.

Ho Chi Minh City.

Portugal claims top position for being the country with the friendliest attitude towards foreign residents, relegating Taiwan (China) and Mexico to second and third places.

Elsewhere, Cambodia was the other Southeast Asian country to feature, coming in at fourth in the friendliest countries ranking. Almost every expat, 96% in total, rates its general friendliness positively, significantly more than the global average of 70%.

On top of this, expats seem to have little trouble settling in. For example, in the article an Australian expat expresses their contentment with “building relationships with the locals”. More than eight in 10 respondents regard the local population as welcoming, 85% in total, and 83% agree that it’s easy to settle down in Cambodia, the website noted.

Additionally, expats can expect a warm welcome in Bahrain, Costa Rica, Oman, Colombia, and Canada. Indeed, between 81% (Canada) and 94% (Portugal) rate the local population’s attitude towards foreign residents positively, which is far above the global average of 67%.

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