The conference was attended by Dinh The Huynh, Politburo member, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and head of its Commission for Communication and Education and Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem.

In his opening speech, Deputy Head of the Central Commission for Communication and Education, Nguyen Bac Son said that last year, remarkable progress was made in the work which promoted the country’s image.

Dissemination of information on sea land islands was implemented widely and systematically among cadres, Party members and people, helping improve efficiency and raise public awareness of the role, position and importance of the sea and islands strategy for the cause of national construction and defence during the process of integration and development, Mr Son said.

According to the conference, in recent times, the international news service and dissemination of information on sea, islands, border demarcation and landmark planting have produced several important results, making an active contribution to introducing the Party’s policies, the State’s laws and the country’s renewal achievements as well as promoting the image of Vietnam and its people.

The work has helped reject incorrect and distorted information by hostile forces thus raising Vietnam’s prestige and position in the international arena and increasing support from the international community and overseas Vietnamese.

Participants also mentioned shortcomings in the work and discussed ways to implement the 2011 tasks with a focus on speeding up dissemination of the policies on building a border of peace, friendship and long-term stability between Vietnam and its neighbours.