In an interview with a VNA reporter in Australia, Professor Carl Thayer of the Australian Defence College, University of New South Wales, highly appreciated the Draft Document submitted to the 14th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam , especially the content that elevates foreign relations and international integration to a central and ongoing task.
According to him, this not only demonstrates the Party's strategic vision but also affirms Vietnam's decisiveness and proactive role on the international stage during the integration period.
Professor Thayer observes that the world today is moving along two opposing trends: on one side, globalization and multipolarization, and on the other, strategic competition, polarization, and division among great powers.
Traditional and non-traditional security issues are increasingly intertwined, making the international environment more complex than ever before.
To protect national interests and successfully achieve long-term sustainable development goals, the professor believes that Vietnam needs to build a comprehensive and effective approach at both bilateral and multilateral levels.
It is in this context that foreign policy and international integration must become a central and ongoing task.
Referring to the national development perspective expressed in the Draft Document of the 14th Party Congress, Professor Thayer stated that the document correctly identified the bottlenecks that need to be addressed: from perfecting institutions and unlocking resources to fostering the spirit of self-reliance and the aspiration for progress of the nation.
According to him, Vietnam is facing the risk of falling behind in the new era, highlighted by the development of digital transformation, artificial intelligence (AI), and quantum computing.
Vietnam needs to seize the wave of the Fourth Industrial Revolution by promoting science and technology, innovation, and transforming production methods, instead of standing outside the trend.
Professor Thayer reiterated the institutional reforms that Vietnam has been implementing since August 2024, such as streamlining the political apparatus, reducing overlap and duplication between ministries and agencies of the Party and Government; merging provinces; and simplifying the administrative apparatus at the district level.
He argued that, following the 14th National Congress, Vietnam's new streamlined political system needs to ensure that policies are implemented effectively at all levels, and that any bottlenecks or other obstacles that arise are quickly resolved.
According to Professor Thayer, the draft document emphasizes the importance of decentralization and the role of citizens in monitoring policy implementation.
Vietnam's rise in the new era cannot rely solely on "top-down orders," but must depend on the power of consensus, by mobilizing the entire population to participate in this breakthrough process.
He saw this as a time for Vietnamese people to be proud of their past, while simultaneously rekindling patriotism, thereby inspiring people to support the country's independent development and Vietnam's rise in the new era. Throughout this process, culture played a crucial and significant role.
In the context of increasingly fierce global strategic competition, building a self-reliant and self-sufficient economy is not only an objective requirement of the country's development process, but also a prerequisite for protecting national independence, sovereignty, and interests.
Professor Thayer highly appreciated the fact that the Draft Document comprehensively outlines a new economic model, emphasizing science and technology, innovation, digital transformation, and the private sector as the main drivers of growth.
Furthermore, the Professor also agreed with the goal of building globally competitive high-tech enterprises and forming a dynamic private sector, and strongly supported promoting multilateral cooperation, considering it a top priority to create synergy with Vietnam's 14 comprehensive strategic partners.
According to Professor Carl Thayer, to achieve a self-reliant and self-sufficient economy, Vietnam needs to shift its labor structure from agriculture and manufacturing to enhancing the role of the technology sector by encouraging domestic and foreign investment, thereby improving productivity and competitiveness.
As a reputable researcher and university professor with many years of experience, Professor Thayer is a strong advocate for reform and modernization of Vietnam's education and training system at all levels, aiming to build world-class research institutes and strengthen cooperation with international experts and the Vietnamese community abroad.
He emphasized that all sectors of the Vietnamese economy must be digitized and adopt the latest technologies to innovate management and develop new productive forces.
Simultaneously, Vietnam needs to quickly implement appropriate legal and financial reforms to support the development of the private sector, while modernizing strategic infrastructure, including economic corridors, high-speed rail, seaports, airports, and internet connectivity.
Vietnam also needs to narrow the digital divide between remote areas and provinces with ethnic minority populations.
Developing an independent economy does not mean closing off or isolating itself from globalization. Professor Thayer argues that, with the increasingly important role of foreign affairs and international integration in the new era, Vietnam must become a leader in multilateralism at the regional and global levels.
According to him, Vietnam should continue to support the United Nations and its system of development agencies, as well as strengthen its role in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum.
The professor recommended that Vietnam should encourage members of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) to accelerate tariff reductions and remove trade barriers, while also considering expanding the CPTPP to include new partners, including the European Union (EU).
Furthermore, according to Professor Thayer's suggestion, Vietnam should also expand economic cooperation with Middle Eastern countries, the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR), and other trading partners, and continue to support efforts to improve the effectiveness of the 14 free trade agreements (FTAs) already signed.
Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/goc-nhin-cua-chuyen-gia-quoc-te-ve-du-thao-van-kien-dai-hoi-xiv-cua-dang-post1077086.vnp
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