Opening of the 150th General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union

Attending the opening ceremony were President of the Senate of Uzbekistan Tanzila Norbaeva and Speaker of the House of Representatives of Uzbekistan Nuriddinjon Ismailov; IPU President Tulia Ackson, IPU Secretary General Martin Chungong; along with 49 Presidents, 46 Vice Presidents and more than 700 parliamentarians of nearly 130 member parliaments.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man leads a high-ranking delegation of the Vietnamese National Assembly to attend the 150th IPU Assembly.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man attends the opening ceremony of IPU-150. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

Delegates perform the ritual of listening to the performance of the Uzbekistan National Anthem and the IPU song at the opening ceremony of IPU-150. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man and Parliaments of IPU member countries attend the Opening Ceremony of the 150th IPU Assembly. Photo: L. Giang

In their welcoming remarks, the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives of Uzbekistan highlighted the significance of the first IPU General Assembly held in a Central Asian country as well as the highly topical theme of this session in the context of the world facing many challenges in ensuring social development, especially due to armed conflicts, great power competition, political instability, declining commitments and resources in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals, ensuring social justice, and assisting vulnerable groups.

Chairman of the Senate of Uzbekistan Tanzila Narbaeva delivers a welcoming speech at the 150th IPU Assembly. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

The Presidents of the Senate and the House of Representatives of the host country especially thanked and appreciated the participation of a large number of IPU member parliaments, especially at the level of the National Assembly President, thereby demonstrating the strong vitality of the IPU, the unanimous support for multilateralism and the joint efforts of parliaments of all countries for noble goals, for the people of each country.

Speaking at the Opening Ceremony, IPU President Tulia Ackson affirmed the historical significance of the 150th IPU General Assembly, the important role of the IPU and member parliaments in promoting persistent and continuous efforts through many sessions to promote democracy, international cooperation, build a more peaceful world, and implement the Sustainable Development Goals.

The IPU President suggested that the IPU General Assembly focus on discussing the world and regional situation, sharing experiences, exchanging and seeking solutions to current challenges such as hunger eradication, poverty reduction, eliminating injustice and social inequality, narrowing the development gap between developed and developing countries, creating sustainable jobs, effectively handling non-traditional security challenges, especially climate change, energy transition, green finance for green economy.

The IPU President said that the IPU and its member parliaments need to take the lead in creating a legal framework, acting as a bridge to resolve disagreements, and taking practical actions to promote social development on the three pillars of peace, justice and a fairer and better future for all, thereby making practical contributions to the success of the United Nations Summit on Social Development held in November 2025 in Doha, Qatar.

Opening Ceremony of the 150th General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union. Photo: Doan Tan - VNA

IPU Secretary General Martin Chungong highlighted the role of parliamentary diplomacy in promoting peace, cooperation and development in regions and the world as well as ensuring better lives for people through dialogue and cooperation, building trust and sharing experiences.

Sharing about the IPU's efforts, Mr. Chungong said that in 2024, the IPU has strived to promote inter-parliamentary cooperation at the global and regional levels, including conflict areas, and announced major and important events in 2025 such as the Second Parliamentary Conference on Interfaith Dialogue in June 2025, the World Conference of Speakers of Parliament and the World Conference of Women Speakers of Parliament in July 2025.

The IPU Secretary-General affirmed his determination to promote gender equality in the year marking the 30th anniversary of the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, especially by launching the Gender Equality Campaign in Parliaments, increasing women's political participation, raising awareness, and combating discrimination and gender-based violence. Regarding the outcomes of IPU-150, the IPU Secretary-General called on this session to discuss and adopt two important resolutions on "The role of parliaments in promoting a two-state solution in Palestine" and "Minimizing the impact of conflict on sustainable development".

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man with delegates attending the opening ceremony of the 150th IPU Assembly. Photo: Doan Tan - VNA

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man with delegates attending the opening ceremony of the 150th IPU Assembly. Photo: Doan Tan - VNA

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man with delegates attending the opening ceremony of IPU-150. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man and delegates pose for a group photo. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

The 150th IPU Assembly will meet from April 6-9. According to the program, National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man will deliver an important speech at the General Debate of the 150th IPU Assembly.

Lam Giang (from Tashkent, Uzbekistan)

Source: https://daibieunhandan.vn/khai-mac-dai-hoi-dong-lan-thu-150-cua-lien-minh-nghi-vien-the-gioi-post409473.html