Enhancing Vietnam's role in building and applying international law in new areas.

On December 12th in Hanoi, the 2025 Seminar on the Development of International Law was held, chaired by the Department of International Law and Treaties, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in collaboration with the Vietnam International Law Association. The seminar was attended by representatives from various ministries, central agencies, and experts, lecturers, and researchers in international law.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Anh Tuan delivered the opening remarks at the seminar. (Photo: Chu Van)

In his opening remarks at the seminar, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Anh Tuan noted that in 2025, international law, despite facing some serious challenges, will continue to develop strongly, especially through multilateral codification mechanisms of the United Nations and specialized international organizations in the fields of trade, environment, maritime affairs, and cybersecurity.

For developing countries like Vietnam, international law continues to play an essential role as a tool for protecting national interests, balancing relationships, and resolving disputes.

Deputy Minister Le Anh Tuan stated that 2025 marks Vietnam's active, proactive participation and pioneering role in shaping international law, demonstrated through its involvement in drafting and hosting the signing ceremony of the Hanoi Convention on Cybercrime.

With 2026 marking the beginning of the implementation phase of the guidelines and policies of the 14th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Vietnam needs to shift strongly from "participation" to "shaping," from "receiving" to "proactively proposing," in multilateral legal activities.

Deputy Minister Le Anh Tuan emphasized the need to continue improving research capacity and forecasting international legal trends; promoting participation in codification processes; and strengthening the capacity to effectively implement and utilize international legal instruments. The Deputy Minister stated that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has developed the document "Some Legal Opinions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2024," which serves as a reference source for international law experts in their research and advisory work on the application of international law.

Delegates attending the seminar. (Photo: Chu Van)

Speaking at the seminar, the President of the Vietnam Association of International Law, Nguyen Thi Hoang Anh, said that the seminar is an annual event organized by the Association in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for many years, connecting experts and legal officials from ministries, sectors, and agencies to exchange and analyze developments and trends in international law, especially in new issues such as cybersecurity and e-commerce.

In two discussion sessions chaired by Dr. Nguyen Thi Hoang Anh, President of the Vietnam International Law Association, and Dr. Pham Lan Dung, member of the Advisory Council of the Asian International Law Association, delegates listened to and exchanged views on the results of discussions by the International Law Commission on sea level rise and non-binding agreements, recent rulings of international judicial bodies, discussions at the International Maritime Organization on autonomous vessels and emission reduction, the application of emission reduction measures in the civil aviation sector, as well as reciprocal trade measures, green trade, and e-commerce.

The opinions highlighted Vietnam's proactive and substantive participation in the development of legal documents in these areas, while emphasizing the need to prepare capacity and conditions for implementation, especially in the areas of combating cybercrime, reciprocal trade, green trade, emission reduction, and marine automation, in order to best ensure the rights and interests of the State, businesses, and people.

In his closing remarks at the seminar, Mr. Nguyen Dang Thang, Director of the Department of International Law and Treaties, expressed his sincere gratitude for the cooperation and support of ministries, agencies, and the Vietnam International Law Association over the past period. He also expressed his desire to maintain and promote the connection and interaction between international legal experts at state management agencies and lawyers, lecturers, and researchers on international law at training and research institutions, contributing to the achievement of the goal of enhancing the effectiveness of international integration in various fields according to Resolution No. 59-NQ/TW of the Politburo on international integration in the new situation.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/phat-huy-vai-role-cua-viet-nam-trong-xay-dung-va-ap-dung-luat-phap-quoc-te-trong-cac-linh-vuc-moi-337532.html