 |
| National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue speaks. (Source: VNA) |
On the afternoon of August 7, National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue attended and delivered a speech at the first plenary session of the 44th General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA-44) taking place in Jakarta, Indonesia.
On behalf of the high-ranking delegation of the Vietnamese National Assembly, National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue sent to Ms. Puan Maharani, Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives, President of the 44th AIPA General Assembly, and the Presidents, Heads of delegations of member parliaments, parliaments of AIPA observer countries, and delegates attending the 44th AIPA General Assembly his sincere greetings and the friendship and solidarity of the Vietnamese National Assembly and people.
The National Assembly Chairman highly appreciated the thorough and excellent preparation work of the host country Indonesia, and agreed with the agenda of the 44th AIPA General Assembly with the theme "Proactively adapting parliaments for a stable and prosperous ASEAN".
The National Assembly Chairman stressed that the world situation is changing rapidly, complicatedly and unpredictably. Peace, cooperation, association and development are still the major trends, but strategic competition is increasing, expanding to many economic, trade and technological fields, affecting the security and development of countries, especially small and medium-sized countries.
Unstable factors such as local conflicts, territorial and resource sovereignty disputes; development gaps, social inequality; severe epidemics; severe climate change; cyber security, food security, energy security, terrorism, transnational crime, etc. are causing enormous, multidimensional challenges.
Besides, we are also taking advantage of the opportunities from the remarkable progress of the 4.0 industrial revolution; the expansion of new economic forms and spaces through accelerating the trend of digital transformation, sustainable, green and inclusive development.
“In that context, we hope that the parliaments of ASEAN countries will promote their important role in strengthening solidarity and the central role of ASEAN, maintaining peace, security and stability in the region; considering this a prerequisite to help ASEAN countries have a favorable environment for economic and social development and rapid growth recovery as the theme of ASEAN in 2023: ASEAN in stature: The heart of growth”, the National Assembly Chairman emphasized.
 |
| The National Assembly Chairman highly appreciated the thorough and excellent preparation work of the host country Indonesia, and agreed with the agenda of the 44th AIPA General Assembly with the theme "Proactively adapting parliaments for a stable and prosperous ASEAN". (Source: VNA) |
Referring to the Indonesian proverb: “A strong tree is not afraid of storms”, the National Assembly Chairman said that despite facing many “headwinds”, we are proud that ASEAN has always stood firm and has never had a better position than today.
The National Assembly Chairman stated that the more “storms” we go through, the brighter we see the ASEAN spirit of self-reliance, cohesion and proactive adaptation, solidarity and unity, readiness to cooperate and dialogue in the spirit of the rule of law. ASEAN has strived to demonstrate its central role, as one of the main actors in creating, shaping and leading the security environment, for the cooperative structure and regional order.
During that process, AIPA and its member parliaments have played a very important role because they represent the voices of states, political parties and people in member countries. AIPA's contributions have been clearly demonstrated in its development process and its international reputation has grown. It can be said that AIPA's image is always reflected in ASEAN's successes.
The National Assembly Chairman affirmed that as a responsible member, Vietnam will do its utmost together with ASEAN countries and AIPA member parliaments to build a strong ASEAN - an AIPA, proactively adapting, "turning danger into opportunity", towards a stable, prosperous and sustainable ASEAN Community.
On that basis, National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue proposed 5 important issues, specifically:
Firstly, strengthen solidarity, promote the central role and strategic value of ASEAN; seek support from partners and the international community in ensuring a peaceful, secure and stable environment in the region; ensure the principles of independence and autonomy, maintain consensus with ASEAN's common stance and viewpoint, following the "ASEAN way"; persistently take peace as the goal, dialogue as the tool, and cooperation as the motto to resolve disputes in the spirit of the rule of law, in accordance with common rules, standards of conduct and international law.
Second, strengthen and expand intra-bloc cooperation in trade, investment, tourism, people-to-people exchange and technology transfer, financial and monetary cooperation, cooperation in the field of safe and sustainable digital transformation, and equitable energy transition.
At the same time, strengthen ASEAN relations with partners to narrow the development gap, effectively respond to non-traditional security challenges such as epidemics, natural disasters, cybercrime, transnational crime, climate change, energy security, water security; enhance sub-regional cooperation, contribute to ensuring inclusive growth, equitable and sustainable development; improve the ability to respond to regional and global challenges.
Third, ASEAN parliaments need to continue to enhance their role in law-making, create a favorable legal corridor, and strengthen their role in supervising ASEAN governments in successfully implementing the Master Plans for ASEAN Community Building 2025 on all three pillars: Politics - Security, Economy, Culture - Society, and towards the Post-2025 Vision.
Fourth, it is recommended that AIPA continue to innovate, become an effective parliamentary cooperation channel, coordinate well between the parliamentary channel and the governments of countries, continue to focus on strengthening relations with partners who are AIPA Observers to create "collective strength" to contribute to resolving the challenges that the region is facing. On that basis, Vietnam supports the admission of the Parliaments of Cuba, Turkey and Armenia as observers of AIPA.
Fifth, at the 44th AIPA General Assembly, Vietnam proposed three draft resolutions to help ASEAN exploit its advantages in science, technology, and innovation to serve economic recovery and development, and exploit the potential for development in agriculture, food, and forestry. Vietnam hopes to receive the consensus and support of ASEAN parliaments.
 |
| The Vietnamese National Assembly delegation attended the first plenary session of the 44th AIPA General Assembly. (Source: VNA) |
On this occasion, the National Assembly Chairman was pleased to announce: In September 2023, in Hanoi, the Vietnamese National Assembly, in coordination with the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), will organize the 9th Global Conference of Young Parliamentarians with the theme "The role of youth in promoting the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals through digital transformation and innovation".
The National Assembly Chairman respectfully invites parliaments of ASEAN countries and observer countries to send delegations of young parliamentarians to attend this very important and meaningful event.
National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue wished Ms. Puan Maharani, Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives, President of the 44th AIPA General Assembly and delegates good health, happiness and success; and wished the 44th AIPA General Assembly great success.
Source
Comment (0)