From diplomacy in service of resistance and nation-building to a comprehensive and modern diplomacy for national development
Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son has written an article on the occasion of the ministry's 76th founding anniversary (August 28, 1945-2021).
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| Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son. (Photo: Tuan Anh) |
Exactly 76 years ago, on August 28, 1945, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs came into being alongside the birth of the Provisional Government of the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam. President Ho Chi Minh was the President of the Provisional Government, and concurrently the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Over the last 76 years, under the leadership of the Party and building on the national tradition of amicable diplomacy and Ho Chi Minh’s thought on diplomacy, the Vietnamese diplomatic service has made important contributions to the nation’s revolutionary cause.
In service of national liberation, reunification, construction and defense
The diplomatic service was established at a time when the country was facing enemies both from within and outside. Immediately after its inception, through implementing a series of strategically minded and wise decisions on external relations by the Party and President Ho Chi Minh, the diplomatic service was an important contributor to the defense of the fledgling revolutionary government.
Such efforts brought about an invaluable window of peace for Viet Nam to prepare itself for a protracted resistance war. Diplomatic strategies, such as “To be firm in principles but flexible in their applications, “To win people’s hearts” and “To divide the enemies” have become classical examples of the Vietnamese revolutionary diplomacy, bearing the hallmark of Ho Chi Minh’s diplomatic thought, style and art.
Upholding the banner of peace, national independence associated with socialism, the Vietnamese diplomatic service became a strategic front in both revolutionary wars and national construction. It was able to win immense support from the socialist countries and the peace-loving people around the world for Viet Nam's righteous cause. Diplomacy, working in concert with the political and military fronts, transformed battlefield victories into diplomatic triumphs on the negotiation table in Geneva in 1954 and Paris in 1973, opening up the strategic opportunity for the nation to move on to the complete victory and the reunification of the North and the South.
Viet Nam came out of the years of wars to face countless hardships and challenges. The diplomatic service galvanized support and assistance of the socialist countries and international friends for Viet Nam's national reconstruction, building and defense.
Diplomacy became a frontline for charting new courses and was the pioneer in gradually breaking isolation and embargoes. It was instrumental in unclogging relations with Viet Nam's neighbors, with major powers and a broad array of partners, and opening up a new state of foreign relations, thus actively serving the interest of Viet Nam's comprehensive Doi Moi process.
The diplomatic service in the Doi Moi and international integration
Viet Nam pursues a foreign policy line of independence, self-reliance, peace, cooperation, development, multilateralization and diversification of relations, and active international integration, in the interest of the nation-state.
Taking this to heart, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other branches of external relations “were the pioneer in building peace, safeguarding the nation, and mustering of resources for national development” and in elevating national prestige alike.
Through expanding and deepening relations with Viet Nam's partners, the diplomatic service, alongside the national defense and public security services, is an active contributor to the defense of national independence, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity. It also explored new markets and harnessed various sources of external financing, technology and knowledge in service of national industrialization and modernization.
As of today, Viet Nam enjoys friendship and cooperation with 189 countries, including 17 strategic and 13 comprehensive partners. It also enjoys economic relations with 230 economies and has signed 15 Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), including next-generation FTAs.
Viet Nam has been actively engaged in international integration, and a responsible contributor to global issues. The country has also played an effective role at a broad range of multilateral forums. In so doing, Viet Nam's standing and prestige among the international community have been increasingly proven and cemented.
Viet Nam was a successful host for numerous major international events, and fulfilled a variety of international offices. These include its non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (for the term 2008-2009, and presently for 2020-2021), and played host to the ASEAN Summits (1998, 2010 and 2020), the ASEM Summit (2004), the APEC Economic Leaders' Week (2006 and 2017), the World Economic Forum on East Asia(2010) and on ASEAN (2018), and the Second US - DPRK Summit (2019).
In addition, cultural diplomacy and foreign information outreach have been a major contributor to the image of a rising Viet Nam during the Doi Moi era. Citizen protection and works related to overseas Vietnamese nationals are steadily growing in effectiveness, and helped bolster national unity and enabled overseas Vietnamese nationals to contribute to the development of their homeland.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak and its complex developments all over the world and in Viet Nam, the diplomatic service stood at the forefront and joined other Ministries and services in stepping up “medical diplomacy” and “vaccine diplomacy”.
This effort helps draw on the timely and effective support of the international community for vaccines, medical equipment and treatment drugs, in the entire country’s concerted efforts to fight the pandemic and promote socio-economic development.
These achievements of foreign relations are key elements of the outstanding and historic accomplishments of the 35 years of Doi Moi. They are testimony to the correctness of the Party's foreign policy line, a crystallization of the effort of the entire Party, army and people, through the seamless collaboration between different branches of foreign relations service.
The efforts and contributions of the diplomatic service are an integral part of this process. It is through the Doi Moi process that the diplomatic service has matured and grown more well-rounded and modern.
Building well-rounded and modern diplomacy in service of the new period of national development
To contribute to the realization of the national development goal mapped out by the 13th Party Congress, the diplomatic service is tasked with ensuring the paramount interest of the nation-state. It needs to deploy foreign relations activities in a cohesive, innovative and effective manner, and actively engage in comprehensive and intensive international integration.
It is important to continue to uphold its role as a pioneer in the establishment and maintenance of an environment of peace and stability, and harness external resources for national development, and to elevate Viet Nam's standing and prestige.
To these ends, the 13th Party Congress set a mission: “to build a well-rounded and modern diplomatic service with three pillars: Party diplomacy, State diplomacy, and people-to-people diplomacy”. Its well-roundedness is manifested, first, in the subjects of foreign relations: the entire political system, the localities, social organizations, business entities and the people.
Second, this process is deployed across the board, ranging from political, defense, security, economic, scientific and technological areas to education and training, medical, environment, cultural and social domains. Diplomatic activities are undertaken physically and in the cyberspace.
Third, it is conducted with every partner, centered around strengthening and deepening relations with all neighboring countries, strategic and comprehensive partners, and other major partners. This also means participating actively and playing a clear role at key multilateral institutions, especially the ASEAN and the UN.
Its modernity is shown through the cohesive and holistic mix between an innovative implementation of the unique diplomatic tradition and characteristics of the nation and Ho Chi Minh’s diplomatic thought, and the finest essence of diplomacy of our time.
It means operating the diplomatic service under a constantly improving institutional framework. It means a close and seamless integration of Party, State and people-to-people diplomacy. It also means a streamlined and effective apparatus that operates scientifically under a standardized and digitized framework, that is capable of adapting and adjusting to the rapid changes of the situation on the ground.
It means a body of diplomatic staff who are fully endowed with boldness, virtues and knowledge, and modern in their way of thinking and working style and method, and those who are able to meet the standards of the region and the world.
A well-rounded and modern foreign service, where each branch and every pillar of diplomacy are seamlessly coordinated, will be a solid contribution towards realizing the vision and targets of national development. In this process, economic diplomacy for development is the core, and “the people, localities and businesses are the centerpieces”.
With the “service” mindset, Vietnamese diplomacy will join other branches to expand the space for development, and enable the localities, people and businesses to access markets and attract investment, technology and talents.
Looking back upon the journey of 76 years of Viet Nam's revolutionary diplomacy, generations of Vietnamese diplomatic staff express their boundless gratitude to the great President Ho Chi Minh, the founder of Viet Nam's revolutionary diplomatic service, who left a unique and invaluable philosophical heritage to the diplomatic service.
Building on President Ho Chi Minh's diplomatic thought and the illustrious tradition of seventy-six years, the diplomatic service as a whole, under the leadership of the Party and the central administration of the State, will make all efforts alongside the entire nation to fight and triumph over the COVID-19 pandemic, and foster economic and social recovery and development.
We are resolved to build a well-rounded and modern Vietnamese diplomatic service that will make commensurate contributions to the development of the country, for an independent, peaceful, strong and prosperous Viet Nam.
(TGVN)
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