General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong with the mark of "Vietnam's bamboo diplomacy"

The achievements of Vietnam's foreign affairs/diplomacy are the results of the entire Party and people, in which the most important and decisive factor is the leadership of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong welcomes US President Joe Biden on a state visit to Vietnam on the afternoon of September 10, 2023. (Photo: Tri Dung/ VNA)

The concept, or school of "Vietnamese Bamboo Diplomacy" was first raised by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong at the National Foreign Affairs Conference (December 14, 2021).

This is a summary and visualization of the foreign policy that the Communist Party of Vietnam has been implementing with important contributions to the country's overall development achievements.

The achievements of Vietnam's foreign affairs/diplomacy in recent years are the result of the entire Party, people and army, in which the most important and decisive factor is the direct and comprehensive leadership of the Party, headed by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

Imprint of Vietnamese diplomatic identity

Associate Professor, Dr. Duong Van Quang, former Director of the Diplomatic Academy, shared that during his lifetime, the General Secretary always emphasized the need to build a comprehensive, modern diplomacy, bearing the "Vietnamese bamboo identity."

Explaining the “identity of Vietnamese bamboo,” Associate Professor, Doctor Duong Van Quang said that bamboo always has 3 parts: root, trunk and top. The typical bamboo root is very strong, firmly rooted and the image of the bamboo root firmly rooted reflects the traditional ideology and culture of Vietnam for thousands of years, which is the ideology of peace and harmony.

This ideology has been expressed in Vietnam's foreign affairs and diplomacy in many periods, including diplomacy during the Ho Chi Minh era through the periods of 1945-1946, the Geneva Conference, the Paris Conference and continuing until today.

The bamboo trunk represents national interests and our view of the world, so the trunk must be firmly attached to the root.

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, on the afternoon of September 6, 2018 (local time), at the President's Botrarov Rutrei Residence in Sochi city. (Photo: Tri Dung/VNA)

Associate Professor, Dr. Duong Van Quang emphasized that the trunk must be strong enough to keep the bamboo standing, but at the same time help the bamboo top to be flexible. The flexible top is the diplomatic art of "using the unchanging to respond to all changes."

“It is diplomacy that determines what we keep and what we give up in international negotiations. International negotiations now are not only related to politics, military, not only borders but also economics, culture, and society. On that basis, we must understand this spirit, in order to promote all the diplomatic traditions and diplomatic identity of Vietnam,” Associate Professor, Dr. Duong Van Quang shared.

Looking back at Vietnam's foreign affairs and diplomacy achievements in recent times under the Party's foreign policy with General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong as the leader, Mr. Duong Van Quang said that Vietnam's diplomacy has achieved many outstanding results.

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made a historic visit to the United States in July 2015, with an unprecedented meeting with US President Barack Obama in the Oval Office of the White House, opening a new chapter in relations between the two countries.

In late October and early November 2022, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong paid an official visit to China, becoming the first foreign leader that the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and General Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping welcomed immediately after the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.

In September 2023, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong hosted the welcoming ceremony for US President Joe Biden and held talks with the White House owner at the Party Central Committee headquarters, which was also unprecedented.

Also in 2023, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and his wife will welcome Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife on a state visit to Vietnam.

In June 2024, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin to Vietnam for a state visit.

According to Associate Professor, Dr. Duong Van Quang, in the current complex international situation, the major powers are competing fiercely, pursuing very different views and policies. He believes that in such complex relationships, Vietnam has good relations and invited leaders of all three major countries to visit, demonstrating the identity of "Vietnam's bamboo diplomacy."

The man who raised the level of Vietnamese diplomacy

According to Ambassador Nguyen Thanh Son, former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador of Vietnam to the Russian Federation, in recent times, especially since the 13th National Party Congress, we have continued to deeply integrate with the world. And to deeply integrate, we must have basic points and features for the world to recognize.

And one of the greatest successes is that we integrate with the world without losing our political color. We still maintain political, security, economic, cultural and social stability under the leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam. Under the leadership of the Party, we have the right foreign policies and guidelines and are always admired by the world for our achievements.

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and General Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping pose for a photo. (Photo: Tri Dung/VNA)

Ambassador Nguyen Thanh Son emphasized that the Party's leadership with its foreign policy line, "bamboo diplomacy," flexible and rhythmic, wanting to be friends with all countries in the world has conquered the world and proven that our foreign policy is very successful.

According to Ambassador Nguyen Thanh Son, such great successes are thanks to the correct and wise direction of the Party with General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong as the leader and the solidarity of the entire people.

According to Ambassador Nguyen Thanh Son, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong really wants Vietnam's foreign affairs/diplomacy in general, and the diplomatic sector in particular, to move towards modernity and regularization, gradually modernizing and standardizing diplomatic staff to be on par with the world.

Sharing memories of meeting General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, Ambassador Nguyen Thanh Son said that when he was the Vietnamese Ambassador to the Russian Federation, he was honored to welcome the General Secretary on an official visit to the Russian Federation.

President Putin at that time highly appreciated the leadership role of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. The Russian Federation also assessed that Vietnam was very effective in integrating with the world and was respected by international friends.

Ambassador Le Van Bang, the first Vietnamese Ambassador to the United States and former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, shared that he was honored to meet and listen to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong come and speak at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs many times. The General Secretary's advice and writings for the diplomatic sector, especially on promoting the "Vietnamese bamboo diplomacy" school, are a handbook that diplomats will remember forever.

According to Ambassador Le Van Bang, the General Secretary's viewpoint on "Vietnam's bamboo diplomacy" is a distillation from the nation's diplomatic history to draw the concept of "bamboo diplomacy" which is very strong but also very flexible.

And in fact, the General Secretary’s view on “Vietnam’s bamboo diplomacy” has clearly brought Vietnam’s diplomacy to international stature. Many countries have expressed their desire for us to share our foreign affairs/diplomacy experiences.

Referring to the official visit to the United States by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong (July 2015), Ambassador Le Van Bang emphasized that the visit of the General Secretary was a historic trip for the two countries, as well as of international significance. Because this was a visit by the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam invited by the US government. It was a historic milestone in Vietnamese diplomacy.

After that, the General Secretary continued to monitor and contribute greatly to the development of Vietnam-US relations.

In 2023, the General Secretary will welcome President Biden and the Vietnam-US relationship will be upgraded to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, bringing benefits to the people of both countries.

Regarding the views and foreign affairs activities of the General Secretary, Ambassador Le Van Bang said that in the diplomatic sector, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong is a person who is always highly respected and learned from by diplomats./.

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