Vietnam - an active and responsible member of IPU

Reporter: Could you please give us more details of the activities that the NA delegation of Vietnam participated in at the IPU-137?

Chairman of the NA Foreign Relations Committee Nguyen Van Giau: The IPU-137, under the theme “Promoting cultural pluralism and peace through inter-faith and inter-ethnic dialogue,” was held amid on-going complicated issues in the world, especially populism, nationalism, ethnic and religious conflicts

The NA delegation of Vietnam participated in all IPU activities. After the first working day of the IPU General Assembly, NA Chairwoman of Vietnam Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan delivered a keynote speech, proposing suitable solutions to the issues under discussion. The delegation also assigned members to attend the sessions of all IPU sub-committees as well as the IPU Group of Women Parliamentarians and the IPU Forum of Young Parliamentarians. This year, Vietnam participated in the IPU-137 activities more actively and pro-actively than before. Our delegates also co-chaired an event with other countries with the Subcommittee on Sustainable Development, Finance and Trade.

 NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan delivering a speech at the IPU-137. Photo: congluan.vn

Reporter: What did the IPU leaders and other delegates evaluate Vietnam’s contribution to the IPU, Mr. Chairman?

Chairman of the NA Foreign Relations Committee Nguyen Van Giau: Last May, the Vietnamese NA and the IPU co-hosted a symposium of parliamentarians in the Asia-Pacific region. We invited various international organizations to this event. The symposium focused on the theme of limiting the impact of climate change and the policy-makers’ response to the issue. It was innovative of Vietnam to invite its development partners, sub-organizations of the United Nations, and international financial organizations to the event.

Through its participation in the IPU-137, Vietnam has been seen as an active and responsible member of IPU, contributing substantially to the IPU General Assembly and demonstrating its prevalent influence. On the sidelines of the general assembly, NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan met with her counterparts from the Russian Federation, Republic of Korea, Iran, among others, where they expressed their appreciation for Vietnam’s socio-economic achievements and the increasing significance on the world stage. They also suggested strengthening parliamentary cooperation and invited the NA Chairwoman of Vietnam to their countries for official visits. On this occasion, Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan also invited countries within the Asia-Pacific region to Vietnam for the upcoming 26^th Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum.

Reporter: Could you elaborate on the results of the official visit of the NA Chairwoman to the Republic of Kazakhstan?

Chairman of the NA Foreign Relations Committee Nguyen Van Giau: At the sessions and meetings, the Kazakh side gave their high appreciation of the bilateral relations in political, economic, and education fields, among others. The host country affirmed that the economic cooperation between Vietnam and Kazakhstan has undergone positive development, especially after the signing of the Vietnamese - Eurasian Economic Union Free Trade Agreement in 2016, which has resulted in a rapid increase in the two-way trade value, from USD 100 million previously to USD 370 million just in the first nine months of 2017. This is estimated to reach USD 450 million by the end of this year. The two sides also hoped to boost agricultural cooperation ties through exchange and import/export of each country’s typical agricultural products. Further cooperation in such fields as tourism, culture, and trade with both ASEAN and East European countries was also suggested.

The activities of NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan in the Republic of Kazakhstan were successful. The host gave a warm welcome to the Vietnamese delegation as the Deputy Chairman of the Mizhili (Lower House) accompanied our NA Chairwoman during the visit in the country’s capital city of Astana. The two sides participated in frank exchanges and delved deeply into practical issues in order to pinpoint what has been achieved as well as what should be further discussed for more cooperation. The visit by NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan to the Republic of Kazakhstan has opened up more future cooperation opportunities for the two countries and the two national assemblies.

Reporter: Thank you very much!

Reported by Chien Thang