Dedicated to serving the Fatherland and the people
On August 28, 1945, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was established with the birth of the Provisional Government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, with President Ho Chi Minh as President of the Provisional Government and Minister of Foreign Affairs.
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Vietnam is an active member of multilateral organizations and forums. |
Over the past 77 years, under the leadership of the Party, promoting the nation's tradition of peaceful but indomitable diplomacy and Ho Chi Minh's diplomatic ideology, Vietnamese diplomacy has continuously developed comprehensively and strongly, making important contributions to the nation's revolutionary cause.
Serving the cause of national liberation, national development and national defense
Under the leadership and training of the Party and President Ho Chi Minh, diplomacy was a strategic front in the two wars of resistance and national construction. With its strategic and clever decisions, diplomacy made an important contribution to protecting the revolutionary government and the people after the August Revolution.
Along with the political, military, economic, cultural fronts..., "fighting while negotiating", "making friends with all democratic countries and not creating enmity with anyone", the diplomatic front has won the great support and assistance of progressive forces and peoples of the world for the just revolutionary cause of our people, creating victories that have glorified the history of the nation, from negotiating and signing the Geneva Agreement in 1954 to the Paris Agreement in 1973. After the country was reunified, diplomacy was the front that created the way, paved the way, gradually broke the siege and embargo, opened up relations with many partners, and opened a new situation for the country's development.
During more than 35 years of innovation, inheriting and applying Ho Chi Minh's diplomatic ideology, consistently implementing the foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, friendship, cooperation and development, multilateralization, diversification, proactive and active international integration, being a friend, a reliable partner and an active, responsible member in the international community, diplomacy together with the pillars and foreign affairs arms have taken the lead in creating and consolidating a peaceful, stable and favorable environment for national development, protecting the Fatherland and enhancing the national position.
To date, our country has diplomatic relations with 190 countries in the world, including strategic partnerships and comprehensive partnerships with 30 countries; economic relations with more than 230 countries and territories; signed 15 free trade agreements (FTAs), including new generation FTAs; is an active member of more than 70 important multilateral organizations and forums, etc.
With an increasingly open and deepened network of foreign relations, a peaceful, stable, independent, sovereign and territorial integrity environment is increasingly consolidated; at the same time, many export and import markets are opened, taking advantage of many sources of capital, technology and knowledge from outside to serve the country's industrialization and modernization.
During the difficult period of the Covid-19 pandemic, health diplomacy and vaccine diplomacy have made important contributions to the successful implementation of the vaccine strategy, creating a prerequisite for our country to switch to safe and flexible adaptation, effectively control the Covid-19 pandemic, promote socio-economic recovery and development, and rise up after the pandemic.
Our country's undertaking of many important international responsibilities such as APEC Host 2017, ASEAN Chair 2020 and Non-permanent Member of the United Nations Security Council 2020-2021, along with proper, reasonable and emotional behavior at many multilateral forums, has affirmed and enhanced the image and prestige of an independent, self-reliant, innovative, peace-loving, international law-respecting, trustworthy, sincere and responsible Vietnam towards the international community.
Cultural diplomacy and foreign information have contributed to strongly promoting the image of the country, people, innovation achievements and Vietnamese cultural identity to the world.
Overseas Vietnamese affairs contribute to strengthening national unity, mobilizing many resources of overseas Vietnamese for national development and defense. Effectively protect our citizens abroad, especially when conflicts, wars, and epidemics occur in the world.
The above achievements are thanks to the correct foreign policy of the Party and State, the crystallization of the efforts of the entire Party, the entire people and the entire political system, the close and effective coordination of the pillars, foreign affairs branches, sectors and levels.
These achievements are also the crystallization of the glorious tradition of Vietnamese foreign affairs and diplomacy, the efforts and persistent dedication of generations of diplomatic officials. It is the revolutionary cause of the nation that has forged the diplomatic sector to grow and develop, creating a unique and distinctive school of Vietnamese foreign affairs and diplomacy in the Ho Chi Minh era.
Building a comprehensive and modern diplomacy
In the light of the foreign policy of the 13th National Party Congress, our country's foreign affairs are entering a new stage of development, associated with the implementation of the policy of "building a comprehensive and modern diplomacy with three pillars: Party foreign affairs, State diplomacy and people's diplomacy".
As the main force on the country's foreign affairs front, the diplomatic sector continues to closely and smoothly coordinate with Party foreign affairs, people's foreign affairs, national defense, security, economy, culture and society to synchronously, creatively and effectively implement foreign affairs tasks.
In particular, the focus is on maintaining a peaceful and stable environment while resolutely and persistently protecting independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity; at the same time, expanding and deepening relations with neighboring countries, important partners and traditional friends, making the most of favorable international factors, "taking people, localities and businesses as the center of service", constantly innovating and creating new ways, new directions and new fields to expand the market, mobilizing external resources to realize the aspirations, visions and goals of national development; promoting Vietnam's role in important multilateral mechanisms to further enhance the country's international position and prestige.
Faced with the demands of the new situation and tasks, it is necessary to build a clean, strong, comprehensive, and modern diplomatic sector. As General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong affirmed at the National Foreign Affairs Conference, "a good diplomat and foreign affairs activist must first of all be a good politician", the key is to build a team of diplomatic staff who are always absolutely loyal to the Party's ideals, dedicated to serving the Fatherland and the people, steadfast, resourceful, professional, and have qualifications reaching the regional and international level.
To do so, it is necessary to further strengthen Party building and rectification, promote the study and following of Ho Chi Minh's ideology, morality and lifestyle, and train and foster diplomatic staff in both political qualities and qualifications and capacity.
Looking back over the past 77 years, generations of diplomatic officials express their infinite gratitude to the great President Ho Chi Minh, the founder who left our country's diplomacy a unique and priceless legacy of diplomatic ideology.
Studying and creatively applying his diplomatic ideology and promoting the glorious tradition of Vietnam's revolutionary diplomacy, the entire diplomatic sector under the leadership of the Party is determined to build a clean, strong, comprehensive, modern Vietnamese diplomatic sector, making worthy contributions to the realization of the goal of a rich people, a strong country, democracy, fairness, and civilization.
Article by former Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan on Vietnamese diplomatic culture
18/12/2021