Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh (Photo: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam hasrecorded substantive improvement of its stature since it became a member of theUnited Nations (UN) four decades ago, Deputy Prime Minister and ForeignMinister Pham Binh Minh affirmed in an interview posted on the Government web portal.
In his remarks, made on the threshold of the40th anniversary of Vietnam’s UN membership (September 20, 1977), Minh noted onJanuary 14, 1946, shortly after the country gained its independence, thenPresident Ho Chi Minh sent a message to the President of the UN GeneralAssembly to show Vietnam’s respect for the global organisation.
For various reasons, it was not until more than30 years later that Vietnam became the 149th member of the UN.
The Deputy PM said Vietnam’s struggle forindependence contributed to the UN’s adoption of the General Assembly’sResolution 1514, on December 14, 1960, on the granting of independence tocolonial countries and peoples. Following national liberation movements aroundthe world, this resolution led to the rapid increase of UN members in the1960s.
Becoming a UN member, Vietnam began to beassisted by the UN through specialised agencies and organisations such as theUN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA). They have cometo support the country’s re-building efforts through influential projects suchas the expanded immunisation programme and the family planning programme.
[Vietnam’s 40-year UN membership marked in Geneva]
Over the last four decades, the UN has assistedVietnam with more than 2 billion USD, substantially helping development, Minhnoted.
Meanwhile, Vietnam has contributed to theimprovement of the UN’s role by participating in building norms and standardsof international law on issues from disarmament to socio-economic affairs, or plottingthe UN’s orientations like the Millennium Development Goals and the SustainableDevelopment Goals.
Notably, the country’s standing in cooperationwith the UN has also changed, the official said, elaborating that it haschanged from simply taking part in meetings to joining UN mechanisms in anactive manner.
Minh added it has also run for seats at UNagencies and mechanisms such as the Commission for Social Development, theCommittee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the Commission on theStatus of Women, the Human Rights Council, the Economic and Social Council, andthe UN Security Council.-VNA
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