Sharing with reporters, former Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat recalled that he knew comrade Vu Khoan since he was appointed by the Party and State as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Laos in March 1993, when Mr. Vu Khoan was Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam.

During the process of contacting, meeting and working with comrade Vu Khoan for many years, he found comrade Vu Khoan to be a highly qualified leader, with deep understanding of the field of science and society, especially the ability to learn foreign languages, this is what impressed him most about Mr. Vu Khoan.

Former Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan. Photo: VGP

According to Mr. Somsavat, when Vietnam became an observer of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) along with Laos in 1992, Mr. Vu Khoan - then Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and considered an expert in Russian - took the initiative to study English to serve his work with ASEAN countries. Although he only studied for a short time, Mr. Vu Khoan was fluent in English, not at the level of diplomatic exchange but grasped and understood deeply. Mr. Somsavat said that not only he admired him, but also his friends in ASEAN, all praised Mr. Vu Khoan.

Mr. Somsavat assessed Mr. Vu Khoan as a very hard-working person, dedicated to learning, researching and studying to expand related knowledge to complete the tasks assigned by the Party and State of Vietnam.

In addition, another thing that impressed Mr. Somsavat in former Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan was that he was a very good communicator, very approachable, attached to and devoted to his friends. According to Mr. Somsavat, this is something that friends from ASEAN countries always mention, not just him.

Sharing with reporters about the contributions of former Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan to Laos-Vietnam relations, Mr. Somsavat said that when he became Lao Foreign Minister in 1993, he asked Mr. Vu Khoan to share his experiences in the field of diplomacy. Mr. Vu Khoan frankly shared with him that neither he nor Mr. Somsavat had attended any professional diplomatic academy, so it was necessary to read, study and master international treaties on international relations, on consular work as well as relevant international laws. Without understanding international laws on diplomacy and related laws and issues, activities in the field of diplomacy will be ineffective.

Mr. Somsavat emphasized that through the lessons that Mr. Vu Khoan shared, he tried to read and research, not only in the fields of politics, economics, and military but also in other fields because diplomacy requires understanding in all fields.

According to Mr. Somsavat, when he was Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Vu Khoan made great contributions to consolidating and strengthening the relationship between the two Foreign Ministries of Laos and Vietnam, especially supporting Laos in preparing to join ASEAN and contributing to the training of diplomatic staff for Laos.

At the end of the talk with reporters, former Lao Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavath emphasized that Comrade Vu Khoan was one of the Vietnamese leaders who made many contributions to preserving and nurturing the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Laos, not only when he was in the diplomatic sector, but also in his later positions as Minister of Trade, Secretary of the Party Central Committee, and Deputy Prime Minister. He affirmed that although Comrade Vu Khoan has passed away, "we will always remember his contributions".

VNA