A delegation of the Communist Party of Vietnam led by Nguyen Khoa Diem, a Politburo member and head of the Party Central Committee’s Ideology and Culture Commission, is in Tokyo for an official visit to Japan.

While in the city, Mr Diem met the Vietnamese press circle and granted an interview to a Tokyo-based correspondent about the role of media bureaux overseas. Following is the full text of the interview.

VOV: In the current context of integration, Vietnam’s major media agencies such as VOV and Nhan Dan (People) national daily opened their bureaux overseas to get information in resident countries and the surrounding regions. What do you think about this trend?

Mr Diem: Information plays a very important role in the process of national development and integration. I highly value Vietnamese media agencies for their efforts to open bureaux overseas to gather information in resident countries and introduce the situation and the image of Vietnam to international friends. To promote friendship and co-operation with foreign countries, we need the latest information to make policies. To this end, we should send correspondents with a high command of foreign languages abroad to engage in the national information networks. There are distant antennas which help provide news updates in all areas of politics, economics and society.

VOV: VOV has established six such bureaux overseas, and what are your assessments of these bureaux’ operations in recent times?

Mr Diem: I think VOV initially established a group of correspondents working far away from the fatherland. It is not an easy task for correspondents to penetrate and cover local and national events, particularly national meetings abroad. I hope that in the coming time, domestic media agencies will take into account the necessary means for correspondents to fulfill their tasks in order to build a contingent of elite correspondents. This will help elevate Vietnam’s position in the area of information. The opening of the six overseas bureaux showed VOV’s initial efforts and I think VOV should open more such bureaux in major centres around the world in the coming time as Vietnam continues to expand external relations.

VOV: What should such bureaux do to fulfil their tasks amidst the arising global complications?

Mr Diem: The world is evolving with unexpected changes. It generally tends to promote co-operation, development and peace, but poses complications. In such a context, requirements for information are much higher. In the immediate time, information from these bureaux should be updated regularly to meet the requirements of recipients in major areas such as politics, economics, culture and society, as well as the development experiences of nations. Journalists play an important role in elevating Vietnam’s image in the international arena.

VOV: Thank you.