Diplomacy should be business-centred: PM

Diplomacy must uphold the principle of taking action to boost economic development. It should translate the strong relations between Vietnam and other countries and foreign partners into opportunities for economic cooperation and global integration, the PM added.

He expressed his appreciation of many Vietnamese ambassadors’ efforts in coordinating closely with ministries and local governments to promote trade and expand markets overseas with diversified and effective approaches.

PM Phuc urged all diplomats to take more active roles in shaping and promoting multilateral partnerships and, at the same time, guide and foster the expansion of all-round cooperation with a focus on economy. In addition, they must provide accurate and up-to-date information on foreign markets for the government, ministries, localities, and enterprises as well as give advices on foreign economic diplomacy and development, he added.

He suggested that diplomats double efforts to search for external resources, promote trade overseas, develop the labour market, call for ODA, and attract more remittance and visitors to Vietnam, all of which will aid the country in striving towards a digital and smart economy.

“Vietnamese embassies should not only serve the Government and the prime minister, but also localities and both private and State-owned enterprises for the ultimate key goal of developing the national economy,” the PM stressed.

The government leader also emphasised the importance of information for foreign service, citing 4,000 foreign reporters covering events in Vietnam in 2017.

“This is an important channel to promote the potential, country and people of Vietnam to the world,” he noted.

At the event, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc spoke highly of the contribution of diplomacy to the country’s achievements.

Resources brought by both internal and external diplomacy have been attributed to the country’s economic restructuring and strong economic growth over recent years, he noted, referring to the fact that Vietnam is the only ASEAN member state to have set up strategic and comprehensive partnerships with five permanent members of the UN Security Council, the entire G7, as well as 13 of the G20 countries.

Over the last two years, Vietnam has taken great advantage of ambassadors and delegations’ missions abroad to organise hundreds of trade and investment promotion events, particularly the promotion of the country’s key agricultural products.

Speaking at the conference, Chairman and General Director of the military-run telecom group Viettel Le Dang Dung voiced his hopes to continue receiving enthusiastic support from Vietnamese diplomatic corps overseas. He asked diplomats to put more effort into bridging domestic and foreign businesses, strengthening legal support for Vietnamese enterprises abroad, and facilitating them to seek overseas trade and investment opportunities.