A beautiful memory!

People of Pyongyang warmly welcomed President Ho Chi Minh leading the Vietnamese Party and Government delegation to pay a friendship visit to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea from July 8-12, 1957. (Photo courtesy of VNA)

What chance brought you to North Korea and why have you been here for nearly two decades?

Personally, I have a lot of affinity with the Vietnam-North Korea relationship, because in my diplomatic career, I have spent nearly 20 years attached to the country and people of North Korea. From 1964 to 1970, I studied in North Korea. After returning home, I was recruited to work in the Foreign Affairs sector and had three terms of service in different positions at the Vietnamese Embassy in North Korea (two terms as a diplomatic officer 1975-1980, 1984-1988 and one term as Vietnamese Ambassador to North Korea 1992-1996).

Perhaps because of that, the land and people of Korea become familiar and close.

Many years have passed but what are the unforgettable memories for you?

What touched me most was that in the 1960s, when the North Korean economy was still facing many difficulties, you had many forms of help for the Vietnamese people in the resistance war for independence and national reunification.

At that time, North Korea accepted to train many Vietnamese interns and I was one of them. Despite the shortage, you always created conditions for Vietnamese students to study and live in the most peaceful and favorable environment. During the years of studying in North Korea, we international students received enthusiastic help from teachers, friends and people here.

We will always remember the times we went to practice in the localities and factories. The North Korean people treated the Vietnamese students as their own children, giving us the best in terms of accommodation, food and living conditions. Those were sincere feelings that touched the hearts of the Vietnamese youth at that time and left an unforgettable mark.

The common source of the two countries' relationship is still traditional friendship. Remember, in 1950, North Korea was one of the first countries to establish diplomatic relations with Vietnam, just after the Soviet Union and China.

Before 1965, the Vietnamese Embassy in North Korea was very small. In 1965, you gave us a 2-hectare embassy compound in the new diplomatic area and were one of the first countries to have a headquarters there.

Mr. Duong Chinh Thuc often reviews commemorative photos with North Korea. (Photo: NVCC)

In the 1980s, when I worked at the Vietnamese Embassy in North Korea, you enthusiastically supported and helped us in foreign affairs activities. I remember that our embassy campus grew many famous fruit trees in North Korea such as apricot, plum, peach, etc. Cooperatives that had sister relationships with Vietnamese cooperatives often came to the embassy to plant trees and gave enthusiastic and meticulous instructions on how to care for them.

Every year, during each harvest season of the local people, embassy officials and staff regularly go to the sister cooperatives to help the Korean people harvest rice and crops. The simple, honest, and friendly North Korean cooperative members bypass diplomatic protocols to welcome the Vietnamese officials as their children returning from afar.

I will always remember the image of Vietnamese diplomats grilling beans and eating with North Korean farmers on the banks of the fields. During harvest or planting season, they worked enthusiastically together on the vast and peaceful fields. The cooperative regularly sent the harvested agricultural products to the Embassy, bunches of vegetables, radishes, kohlrabi… all of which were sincere feelings that the North Korean people had for us.

Regarding high-level exchanges between the two countries over the past 75 years, what are your impressions, especially during your time working in North Korea?

High-level visits between leaders of the two Parties and two countries are extremely important in fostering the traditional Vietnam-North Korea friendship.

After establishing diplomatic relations in 1950, relations between the two countries were strengthened when President Ho Chi Minh visited North Korea in 1957. A year later, Chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea, Premier Kim Il Sung paid an official visit to Vietnam.

Next, we can mention Prime Minister Pham Van Dong's visit to North Korea in 1961 (on this occasion, the two countries signed a Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation); President Kim Il Sung's unofficial visit to Vietnam in 1964; and State Council Chairman Vo Chi Cong's official visit to North Korea in 1988.

After that, President Tran Duc Luong paid an official visit to North Korea in 2002; General Secretary Nong Duc Manh paid an official friendship visit to North Korea in 2007 and this occasion was the State visit to North Korea by General Secretary To Lam.

“I love the country and people of North Korea with all my heart. For nearly 30 years, I have not had the opportunity to return to North Korea. Many of my North Korean friends of the same generation have passed away. But every year in Vietnam, I still attend every commemorative ceremony and rally organized by the North Korean Embassy in Hanoi; still follow and research all information about North Korea; still feel sad about every difficulty North Korea faces and happy with every success the North Korean people achieve.”

In that flow of bilateral relations, can you share your expectations about General Secretary To Lam's visit?

The State visit of General Secretary To Lam to North Korea this time, in my opinion, is very special because it is the first visit by the head of our Party after 18 years. The visit is a very important milestone, of historical significance for the Vietnam-North Korea relationship on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of traditional friendship. In particular, I think this is an opportunity for Vietnam to share with North Korea its development experiences in many fields.

Hopefully, with this important visit, the Vietnam-North Korea relationship will have more breakthroughs, opening a new phase in bilateral relations and further strengthening friendly exchanges. The two countries have a lot of room for cultural and sports exchanges. We do not forget the help of North Korea in the 1960s and 1970s because many of our famous musicians and football players were trained in North Korea such as musician Thanh Tung, musician Tai Tue, artist Phung Thi Nhan, and the generation of players from the once-famous The Cong club.

General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea Kim Jong Un welcomed General Secretary To Lam on October 9. (Source: VNA)

During the visit, the two countries' senior leaders are expected to cut the ribbon to inaugurate the statue of President Ho Chi Minh in the grounds of the Vietnamese Embassy in North Korea. We still remember the extremely touching image of people welcoming President Ho Chi Minh to visit North Korea in 1957. What is the significance of this event to the friendship between the two nations, sir?

For the North Korean people, when talking about Vietnam, they always mention President Ho Chi Minh. In 1957, when welcoming President Ho Chi Minh to visit, the North Korean people stood on both sides of the road, from the airport to the center of Pyongyang city, several dozen kilometers away. President Ho Chi Minh was welcomed by the Chairman of the Korean Workers' Party, Prime Minister Kim Il Sung, in a sincere and close atmosphere.

It can be said that the "catchphrase" of the people as well as officials of the two countries is the good traditional friendship between Vietnam and North Korea, personally built and diligently cultivated by President Ho Chi Minh and President Kim Il Sung.

Currently, there is no Ho Chi Minh statue in Pyongyang. Therefore, the event of placing the statue in the Embassy grounds during this visit is very meaningful. The image of President Ho Chi Minh in the large grounds of the Embassy will be a symbol of the traditional friendship right in the country of Korea.

I remember that there used to be many workshops, factories, and enterprises in North Korea named after Vietnamese heroes such as Nguyen Van Troi and Le Van Tam workshops. The relationship between educational institutions and cooperatives was also very active. Therefore, I think that placing a statue of Uncle Ho in Pyongyang is a very beautiful image, contributing to strengthening and embellishing the Vietnam-North Korea friendship.

As someone who has been associated with North Korea for a long time and as a former Vietnamese Ambassador to North Korea, I hope that General Secretary To Lam's visit on this occasion will create a new milestone in the traditional cooperation and friendship between Vietnam and North Korea.

Thank you!

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/mot-mien-ky-uc-dep-tuoi-330412.html