A delegation of the Vietnamese Embassy in Laos and Vietnam’s diplomatic offices in the country offered flowers at the statue of late Lao President Kaysone Phomvihane in the Kaysone Phomvihane Museum on December 11 on the occasion of his 100th birth anniversary (December 13, 1920-2020).

With the success of the ASEAN Chairmanship Year 2020, Vietnam is not only an active ASEAN member but also a strong, trustworthy and special mainstay, especially at a time when ASEAN has to face challenges like COVID-19 pandemic at present, said Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

Singaporean Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen congratulated Vietnam, the ASEAN 2020 Chair, on successful organisation of the 14th ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting (ADMM), and the 7th ADMM Plus.

The General Statistics Office (GSO), as ASEAN Chair in the field of statistics this year, hosted a High-level Forum on the ASEAN Community Statistical System (ACSS) and Vietnam’s statistical system in the form of video conference on December 10.

The ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus (ADMM+) has become an effective and practical defence-security consultative mechanism, helping the region cope with emerging non-traditional security challenges over the past decade, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has said.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has congratulated outgoing New Zealand Ambassador to Vietnam Wendy Matthews on her successful tenure in Vietnam.

Countries participating in a plenary meeting of the UN General Assembly’s 75th session on December 8 highlighted the importance of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) as the international legal framework regulating all activities in the seas and oceans.

Vietnam and Mongolia on December 9 agreed on specific measures and orientations to consolidate and enhance their traditional friendship and cooperation in the time ahead.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on December 9 suggested Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam (CLV) practically expand their cooperation, tighten the links between the CLV Development Triangle Area and the member economies, and further optimise their potential.

VOV.VN - Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc outlined three priority areas for future cooperation among the four regional countries namely Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam (CLMV) at the 10th CLMV Summit held virtually on December 9.

VOV.VN - ASEAN needs to strengthen defence cooperation among member states as well as with partner countries to address traditional and non-traditional security challenges in the context of geopolitical and geostrategic shifts globally.

Ambassador Dian Triansyah Djani, head of Indonesia’s permanent mission to the UN, affirmed Indonesia and Vietnam back the transition process in Sudan, when delivering a joint speech of the two countries at the UN Security Council briefing on Sudan situation and operations of the UN Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan on December 8.

Vietnam handed over Chairmanship of the Committee of Permanent Representatives to ASEAN (CPR) to Brunei during its 18th virtual meeting on December 8.

VOV.VN - The Vietnamese Permanent Mission to the UN hosted an online meeting on December 7 in order to summarise the activities of the ASEAN Committee in New York over the course of the year, before handing over the nation’s current chairmanship to Brunei.

Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith left Hanoi on late December 6, concluding his three-day visit to Vietnam to co-chair the 43rd meeting of the Vietnam-Laos Inter-Governmental Committee on bilateral cooperation at the invitation of his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

VOV.VN - Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong on December 6 hosted a reception for a high-ranking delegation of Laos led by Politburo member and Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith who are on a visit to Vietnam to attend the 43rd meeting of the Vietnam-Laos Inter-Governmental Committee.

VOV.VN - Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc is due to attend the 9th Summit of the Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS 9), the 10th Cambodia-Laos-Myanmar-Vietnam (CLMV) Summit and the 11th Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam Summit on Development Triangle Area (CLV-11), to be held virtually on December 9.

VOV.VN - Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong sent a letter of greetings to Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn Phra Vajiraklaochaoyuhua on the occasion of the National Day of Thailand (December 5).

The Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO) has presented a “For peace and friendship among nations” insignia to outgoing Russian Ambassador to Vietnam Konstantin Vnukov.

VOV.VN - Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong has extended a message of condolences to French President Emmanuel Macron over the passing of former President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing.

VOV.VN - The Vietnam-Poland Friendship Association came together with the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations (VUFO) on December 4 to hold a meeting to celebrate the 70th anniversary of Vietnam-Poland diplomatic relations after they were first established in 1950.

The General Assembly of the United Nations is holding a special session on COVID-19 response from December 3-4 in New York. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has sent his remarks to the session. Following is the full text.

Vietnam’s chairmanship has ensured ASEAN has retained its ability to effectively channel regional cooperation, according to a senior analyst from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI)’s defence and strategy programme.

Deputy Defence Minister Sen. Lieut. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien and Deputy Secretary Strategy, Policy and Industry at the Australian Department of Defence, Peter Tesch, co-chaired the fourth Vietnam - Australia defence policy dialogue held via videoconference on December 3.

An official of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) on December 3 spoke highly of the determination, efforts and achievements of Vietnam in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and sustainable development goals (SDGs).

VOV.VN - Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith will lead a high-level delegation of the Lao Government to visit Vietnam and co-chair the 43rd session of the Vietnam-Laos Intergovernmental Committee from Dec. 4-6.

VOV.VN - China should respect Vietnam’s sovereignty over the Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagoes and cancel tours of Vietnam’s Paracel islands.

Vietnam, as one of the countries most affected by bombs, mines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) left over from wartime, always strongly supports efforts at national, regional and international levels to solve consequences, ensure people’s lives and boost socio-economic development at contaminated areas.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung and Kamal Malhotra, UN Resident Coordinator in Vietnam, co-chaired a seminar on building the Vietnam – UN development cooperation framework in 2022-2026 in Hanoi on December 2.

VOV.VN - Kenya and Vietnam should continue to strengthen bilateral relations, as well as to maintain effective coordination and support at regional and international forums.