During his official visit to Bulgaria, on the afternoon of September 24 (local time), at the headquarters of the Vietnamese Embassy in Sofia, National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue met with the Vietnamese community in Bulgaria and five other European countries including Greece, Romania, Turkey, Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Also attending the meeting were Vietnamese Ambassadors to various countries.
After listening to the opinions of representatives of the leaders of the Union of Vietnamese Associations in Europe, the Union of Women's Associations in Europe, the Vietnamese Association in Bulgaria, and representatives of Vietnamese students, the National Assembly Chairman expressed his pleasure in visiting the Embassy, meeting with Embassy staff, meeting with community representatives, Ambassadors, and spouses of countries neighboring Bulgaria.
The National Assembly Chairman said that this could be considered a special meeting with voters, including "extremely special voters" such as Mrs. Nguyen Thi Chau (94 years old) and Mrs. Tran Thi Nguyen (87 years old).
The National Assembly Chairman emphasized that the initiative to organize meetings with a large number of representatives of the Vietnamese community in various countries is a form of meeting that should be continued; at the same time, he highly appreciated the initiative to establish associations (businessmen, women, etc.) within the Vietnamese community in Europe.
Regarding the proposals of the community representatives, the National Assembly Chairman said that these were profound opinions.
Announcing the purpose of the official visit to Bulgaria with diverse participants from National Assembly leaders, Government members, Central and local authorities, National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue said this activity took place 15 years after the visit of National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Phu Trong (in 2008).
During this visit, the Chairmen of the National Assembly of the two countries will hold talks and the two sides will re-sign the Cooperation Agreement. Bulgaria is one of the first 10 countries in the world to establish diplomatic relations with Vietnam.
According to the National Assembly Chairman, with the 73-year-long traditional friendship and cooperation between the two countries, the visit affirms Vietnam's determination to strengthen the cooperative relationship, especially for the next 27 years (the time leading up to the 100th anniversary of bilateral cooperation).
Currently, political and diplomatic relations between the two countries are developing very well. However, trade and investment are still limited.
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| National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue with delegates. Photo: VNA |
Sharing some other important activities that will take place within the framework of the visit, the National Assembly Chairman said that with the focus on promoting trade and investment, this is an opportunity for both sides to review and promote; at the same time, there will be meetings and contacts with leaders of major economic groups in Bulgaria and the European region. Along with that, both sides will strive to promote local cooperation between the two countries...
According to the National Assembly Chairman, Bulgaria - with its small population - is an opportunity for Vietnam to develop a "niche market". The goods that the two sides can trade should also be exploited because they are not competitive and can complement each other.
Emphasizing the valuable asset of the bilateral relationship is that Vietnam has about 30,000 people who have studied and worked in Bulgaria and currently there are about 1,000 Vietnamese people studying and living in the Land of Roses, the National Assembly Chairman assessed that this is an asset and a bridge that needs to be promoted; promoting cooperation in education and training; cooperation in information technology and electronics due to low logistics costs...
Summarizing the domestic situation, the National Assembly Chairman shared that after more than 35 years of renovation, “the country has never had such a foundation and potential as it does today”. The size of the economy ranks 38th in the world, and if converted by purchasing power parity, it ranks 10th in Asia and 24th globally…
In that common achievement, the Party and State consistently advocate that "overseas Vietnamese are an inseparable part and a resource of the Vietnamese ethnic community" as demonstrated in Resolution 36 of the Politburo on work with overseas Vietnamese (issued in 2004).
Highlighting the great contributions of the Vietnamese community, who always turn to their homeland, such as the act of donating nearly 1 billion VND to support the victims of the recent fire in Thanh Xuan district (Hanoi), the National Assembly Chairman said that the support and gestures of the Vietnamese community towards the country in recent times are extremely valuable.
The National Assembly Chairman expressed his joy that Slovakia was the second country (after the Czech Republic) to recognize the Vietnamese community as an ethnic minority; many Vietnamese students in Europe achieved high academic achievements.
According to the National Assembly Chairman, this recognition demonstrates the strength of the community, creating conditions for people to deeply integrate into the local society and contributing to the development of cooperative and friendly relations between Vietnam and countries in the region.
The National Assembly Chairman hopes that people will strive to build a united community, help each other develop, focus on preserving and promoting the Vietnamese language, national cultural identity and contribute to building the homeland and country to become stronger and more prosperous; at the same time, he believes that as long as there is spoken and written language, there will be culture and homeland.
Informing that the Government has assigned the task of supporting teachers and textbooks in this work, the National Assembly Chairman emphasized that the fact that many Bulgarians currently have the need to learn Vietnamese is also very good for the cause of promoting and preserving the Vietnamese language in the community.
Along with that, when conditions permit, the community forms cultural institutions - places to meet, maintain and promote Vietnamese cultural traditions for generations of Vietnamese people.
The National Assembly Chairman stated that the Party and State always consider citizen protection work to be of primary importance in the work of overseas Vietnamese; and requested that embassies continue to promote citizen protection and consular work.
The National Assembly Chairman also shared that in the law-making program of the 15th National Assembly, the National Assembly considered and approved the Law on Citizen Identification (amended); prepared to consider and approve the Law on Land (amended)...
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| National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue presents Mid-Autumn gifts to children. Photo: VNA |
The National Assembly Chairman also affirmed that the Party and State always strive to improve policies and laws for overseas Vietnamese to better ensure the legitimate rights and interests of overseas Vietnamese.
Regarding the issue of labor export, the National Assembly Chairman said that he will assign the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs Committee and the National Assembly's Social Affairs Committee to study and supervise to promote improvement and good implementation of this work in the coming time, ensuring the rights of Vietnamese workers abroad.
At the Embassy, National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue and members of the high-ranking delegation of the Vietnamese National Assembly witnessed the launching ceremony of the Education Promotion Fund of the Vietnamese Community in Bulgaria, and contributed to the Fund; and inaugurated the Homeland Garden, a space to display Vietnam's socio-economic products.
On this occasion, in the bustling atmosphere of the lion dance and art performances imbued with Vietnamese culture, the National Assembly Chairman and the delegation gave gifts and celebrated the Mid-Autumn Festival with the children.
According to VNA/Vietnam+
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