Parliamentary diplomacy helps raise Vietnam’s stature in international arena: NA leader

At a working session with the NA’s Committee for External Relations, the top legislator noted aside from assisting the parliament in making laws, conducting supervision, and issuing decisions on important issues, the committee has coordinated the NA’s relations with other countries’ parliaments and international and regional inter-parliamentary organisations under the direction of the NA Standing Committee and the NA chairperson.

He said the committee has done a good job of advising the NA and its Standing Committee about external parliamentary relations, actively taken part in international and regional parliamentary forums, and coordinated well with diplomatic activities of the Party, the Government, and the people.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, it helped the NA successfully chair the 41st General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA 41) via videoconference last year.

In the time ahead, he requested, the committee needs to make an action plan to push ahead with reforming and improving its performance, thus helping to continue bringing into play the pioneering role of diplomacy in creating and maintaining a peaceful and stable environment, mobilising external resources for national development, and promoting Vietnam’s position and prestige in line with the viewpoint on and major orientations for diplomacy stated in the documents of the 13th National Party Congress.

It should identify the focal and strategic issues, as well as the key targets in bilateral and multilateral activities with the ultimate goal of working to guarantee the legitimate interests of the State, enterprises, and the people, Hue said, demanding attention to economic diplomacy that centres on the people and businesses.