Thao’s ILC membership reflects Vietnam’s increasing prestige

The election of Ambassador Nguyen Hong Thao to the UN International Law Commission (ILC) for the 2017-2021 tenure demonstrates Vietnam’s increasing position and prestige in the global arena, said Deputy Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung.

The event is also an acknowledgement of Vietnam’s responsible contributions to joint activities of the international community, including the field of international law, Trung told the press while commenting on the election of Ambassador Thao to the ILC during the 71^st UN General Assembly on November 3 in New York.

Joining the ILC will offer Vietnam a great opportunity to develop a contingent of legal experts and actively handle international issues on the basis of international law, the official noted.

Ambassador Nguyen Hong Thao. Photo: MOFA

He added that Vietnam’s decision to run for a seat at the commission sprouted from its foreign policy of active and proactive international integration, and was part of its efforts to improve the quality and efficiency of multilateral diplomacy.

The move also demonstrates the country’s stance on addressing international disputes peacefully in line with international law, promoting universal jurisdiction and backing legal and diplomatic processes, the Deputy FM stressed.

According to the official, the Foreign Ministry will support Thao to successfully assume his post, contributing to the operation of the commission, for interests of all UN member countries, especially developing ones.

The ministry also hopes that the ambassador will step up research to contribute to the development of the international law sector in Vietnam, and become a deserving Vietnamese representative at international law forums.

Thao was elected to the ILC with 120 out of 191 votes by the UN General Assembly. This was the first time a Vietnamese candidate had run for, and won, one out of the seven ILC seats allocated to the Asia-Pacific region.

Ambassador Thao is an international law expert with consistent academic background as a Doctor with profound experience.

He was deputy head of the National Border Committee, head of the negotiation teams on border agreements with neighboring countries and a legal advisor to the drafting process of Vietnam’s 2012 Law of the Sea.

From 2011 to 2014, he was the Vietnamese ambassador to Malaysia. He has been Vietnam’s ambassador to Kuwait since 2014.

Vietnam launched a campaign for the election in February 2016.

Earlier, the Vietnamese Delegation to the UN, the World Trade Organization and other international organizations in Geneva sent a diplomatic note to introduce Thao to delegations from other countries.

ILC, UN’s subsidiary organ established in 1947, is in charge of compiling international treaties, drafting international conventions and studying major issues related to international laws.

The commission has 34 members, elected once every five years. Its members are professors, experienced diplomats and lawyers well-versed in international laws, working independently from the countries that nominate them.