Vietnam PM exalts sincerity, trust, responsibility in international cooperation

The PM said he was delighted to see the thriving development of the Vietnam-U.S. relationship founded on mutual respect and support after nearly three decades of political normalization.

“That relationship has borne fruits with the joint efforts of both countries in sincerity, trust, responsibility, understanding, sharing and mutual respect to achieve the goals that the two countries and the two peoples desire and aim for,” said the PM at the Center For Strategic & International Studies (CSIS).

The PM said that both Vietnam and the U.S. have overcome the differences and achieved the foundational grounds for the relationship, as General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong said during his official visit to the U.S. in 2015, in which he stressed the “mutual respect of each other’s political institution, sovereignty and integrity of each other’s territory.”

The world is now at a time which could be considered most challenging after the Cold War, and the geopolitical transitions and geoeconomics competitions between the big countries are making breakthrough changes globally with difficult-to-predict factors that can impact the security and development of many countries, Chinh said.

There is increasing risks of war and instability, while the global economy is seeing competition and conflict, he added.

The traditional and non-traditional challenges such as climate change, natural disasters, environmental resources depletion, energy security, water security, food security, human security and cybersecurity continue to see complicated developments which have severe impacts on countries that are striving to realize the goals of sustainable development by 2030 by the United Nations, he said.

“Sincerity, trust and responsibility play major roles in dealing with the ongoing global issues,” he said.

The lack of these factors is one of the reasons for the tension and conflicts in many regions, which have severely prevented bilateral partnership between countries.

Countries need to build and reinforce their sincerity and trust, and each of them needs to act responsibly, first by following their own commitments and international laws, as well as the Charter of the United Nations, in respecting the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity.

They should also respect each other’s political institution and contribute in their own capacity to the international community.

Equal partnership and communication based on mutual respect is one of the best methods in dealing with conflicts.

“Only through sincerity, trust and responsibility, countries can together resolve the issues in an effective manner,” he said, adding that this main method should not be broken by any reason.

The ASEAN has proven the value of sincerity, trust and responsibility in dealing with regional and global matters.

Located between the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean, ASEAN strives to affirm its central role in the shaping regional architecture and join hands in building the ASEAN Community with a Vision to 2025.

On the common foundation of sincerity, trust and responsibility, ASEAN is promoting its role and working with partners to promote the building of the world situation, a region of peace, stability, cooperation and development, based on international law and the Charter of the United Nations.

ASEAN has established and continues to strengthen a network of strategic partnerships with most of its important partners, including the U.S.

ASEAN wishes to work with partners to build sincerity, strengthen trust, act responsibly, and promote cooperation on the basis of respecting each other’s independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and political institutions, respecting international law, and strengthening international cooperation in handling global challenges, including the Covid-19 pandemic, climate change and environmental protection.

As an active and responsible member in ASEAN and the international community, Vietnam always strives to contribute to dialogue and cooperation, ready to play an active role in line with its potential, Chinh said.

“From a country divided by an unreasonable war, Vietnam has bravely stood up to fight for independence, freedom and national reunification,” he said.

From a poor and backward country, Vietnam has strived to become a middle-income country and is realizing aspirational development goals, he added.

The PM wants Vietnam by 2025 to become a developing country with modern industry and surpass the low middle-income level.

It should be a developing and industrialized country by 2030, a modern and high-income country and by 2045.

“Vietnam’s development aspiration is closely linked with the aspiration for peace, stability, cooperation and development of the whole region and the world,” he said, adding that he desired for the U.S. and its partners to support Vietnam in realizing the above strategic vision, and open up great opportunities for more comprehensive and deeper cooperation between Vietnam, the U.S. and other countries.

This was Chinh’s first speech in the U.S. in the lead up to the U.S.-ASEAN Summit, which marks 45 years of U.S. ties with Southeast Asia and 27 years since the U.S. and Vietnam established diplomatic relations.

He will join other leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members at the May 12-13 summit, held to commemorate the 45th anniversary of ASEAN-U.S. relations.

During this trip, PM Chinh will also work with United Nations leaders in New York, talk with U.S. investors doing business in Vietnam and meet with Vietnamese expats.

CSIS is one of U.S. leading academic and research centers. It conducts policy studies and strategic analyses of political, economic and security issues throughout the world, with a specific focus on issues concerning international relations, trade, technology, finance, energy and geostrategy.

Vietnam is a critical partner for the United States in the Indo-Pacific, and their robust relationship continues to endure through mutual respect, collaboration, and a shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific, CSIS said in a pre-event release.

Former President of Vietnam Truong Tan Sang in 2013 spoke at CSIS with an emphasis on the Vietnam-U.S. relations in the Asia Pacific.

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong in 2015 also visited CSIS and spoke about the partnership between Vietnam and the U.S. in a new stage of development.

Vietnam and the U.S., former foes, normalized relations in 1995.

Recent milestones in bilateral ties include the U.S. fully lifting the lethal arms export ban to Vietnam during President Barack Obama’s visit in May 2016; and sending aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson to Da Nang in March 2018, marking the biggest U.S. military presence in the country since the Vietnam War ended in 1975.

Bilateral trade surged from $450 million in 1994 to $111.56 billion in 2021.

The U.S. is Vietnam’s biggest export market and Vietnam is the U.S.’s ninth biggest trade partner.

As of March, U.S. foreign direct investment in Vietnam reached $10.3 billion, ranking 11^th in 141 countries and territories which have FDI projects in Vietnam, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.