Political News 17/10 RoK to sign FTAs with Vietnam, China, New Zealand this year The Republic of Korea (RoK) is undertaking maximum efforts to sign free trade agreements (FTAs) with Vietnam, China and New Zealand by the end of this year in a bid to boost the country’s presence overseas, according to the RoK’s Prime Minister Chung Hong-Won. An agreement was reached earlier this month by Vietnamese and RoK leaders to conclude their FTA negotiations before the year is out. Signs of progress were noted in RoK–China negotiations, despite a few disagreements on industrial and agricultural goods and seafood. Meanwhile, RoK and New Zealand started their 9 th round of free trade talks on October 15. Vietnam observes Mozambique’s general election Vietnamese Ambassador to Mozambique Nguyen Van Trung is participating in the fifth general election of Mozambique as an observer on behalf of the Communist Party of Vietnam. Almost 10.9 million voters out of more than 25 million inhabitants are expected to cast their votes to select a new president, 250 National Assembly deputies and 811 members of provincial councils. Among those who are running for president,are representatives of the Mozambique Liberation Front, the Mozambique Democratic Movements and the Mozambique National Resistance Movement. The election is supervised by close to 500 international and 5,000 Mozambican observers. Vietnamese, French communist parties forge links The French Communist Party (PCF) plays a special role in the Vietnam-France strategic partnership, and its relations with the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) are developing well in various fields, Politburo member Le Hong Anh has said. Le Hong Anh, who is also permanent member of the CPV Central Committee’s Secretariat, made the remark while working with the PCF National Secretary Pierre Laurent, upon his arrival in Paris on October 16. He underlined Vietnam’s foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, diversification and multi-lateralisation of external relations, adding the country is a friend, reliable partner, and responsible member of the international community. He thanked the PCF and French people for supporting his country during the past struggle for liberation and unification as well as the current national construction and defence. The official informed the host of Vietnam’s socio-economic situation over the past few years, along with the review of the 30-year Doi moi (Renewal) process and preparations for the 12th National Party Congress in early 2016. Pierre Laurent suggested enhancing the special, traditional relationship between the two parties in a practical manner. He confirmed that his party will actively coordinate with the CPV in preparation for the second joint theory conference to be held in Vietnam next May. Regarding the East Sea issue, Pierre Laurent hailed Vietnam’s stance on resolutely safeguarding national independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, and addressing any disputes through peaceful means and in respect of international law. The Vietnamese official later worked with First Secretary of the French Socialist Party Jean-Christophe Cambadelis to seek measures to push the relations between the two parties and the two nations forward. Earlier on October 15, Le Hong Anh met with Vietnamese people in Azerbaijan. France backs Vietnam’s stance on East Sea issue France supports Vietnam’s position to resolutely defend its independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity and settle disputes by peaceful means on the basis of respect for international law. National Secretary of the French Communist Party (PCF) Pierre Laurent was speaking at a working session with Politburo member and permanent member of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Secretariat Le Hong Anh in Paris on October 16. Pierre Laurent hailed the special PCF-CPV relationship with historical features while underlining the need to boost practical cooperation between the two parties in the current global situation. The PCF leader thanked the CPV for significantly contributing to the success of the "Humanitarian" press festival held in July which has helped step up communications and reinforce solidarity among the world communists. Pierre Laurent showed his keen interest in the second theory seminar between the two Parties set for May next year in Vietnam, confirming that his party will actively collaborate with the CPV in preparatory work and will send a high-level delegation to attend the event. He also agreed with the Vietnamese Party and State’s guidelines to further the Vietnam-France strategic partnership joint statement in the spirit of the high-level Vietnam-France joint statement released in September 2013. Hong Anh, in turn, thanked the PCF and French people for their support and assistance given to Vietnam’s past struggle for national liberation and unification and the current national construction and defence. “The CPV delegation’s visit aims to elevate the Vietnam-France strategic partnership to even greater heights as well as the relations between the two parties” Anh noted. The Vietnamese Party official also updated his host on the socio-economic situation in Vietnam in recent times, a review of 30 years of pursuing the Doi Moi (Renewal) and preparations for the CPV National Congress slated for early 2016. He also affirmed Vietnam’s foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, openness; multilateralization and diversification of international relations, striving for peace, independence and development. The country is keen to expand external relations, boost deeper international integration while being a reliable partner and responsible member of the international community, he added. The same day, the Vietnamese delegation also had a working session with the First Secretary of the French Socialist Party (PS) Jean-Christophe Cambadelis and the PS leadership. The two sides had in-depth discussions about the global situation and developments in the East Sea, briefed each other on the situation in their respective country, and examined ways to promote bilateral relations between Vietnam and France and between the CPV and the PS as the two ruling parties, both at central and local levels. Vietnam, Cambodia agree to boost defence cooperation Vietnam’s Defence Academy and the Cambodian Royal Academy of Military should further bolster their training cooperation and experience exchange, so as to improve the quality of officers, a senior officer has said. Vice Admiral Pham Ngoc Minh, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People’s Army, made the suggestion during his reception for the visiting Director of the Cambodian Royal Academy of Military, General Ung Sean, in Hanoi on October 16. Host and guest reviewed the Vietnam-Cambodia relations in many fields, especially in defence-security, in recent times. Vietnam congratulates new IPU President National Assembly Vice Chairwoman Tong Thi Phong on October 16 congratulated Bangladeshi parliamentarian Saber Chowdhury on his election as President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). Saber Chowdhury won the majority of votes in a secret ballot held on the last day of the 131 st Assembly of the IPU in Switzerland , defeating three other candidates to become the 28 th IPU president. Earlier, the Vietnamese official held a meeting with Speaker of the Bangladeshi Parliament S.S Chaudhury, who valued Vietnam ’s active role at the IPU, helping to increase the country’s standing in the global arena. Vice Chairwoman Tong Thi Phong, head of the Vietnamese delegation to IPU-131, highlighted the flourishing ties between Vietnam and Bangladesh , and spoke highly of Chaudhury’s efforts as a candidate for the IPU presidential role. Ethnic minority policies benefit southwestern residents The implementation of ethnic minority and new-style rural building policies in the Southwestern Region has started to show positive results, representatives from the Regional Steering Committee and the National Assembly’s Ethnic Council concluded in a working session in Can Tho city on October 16. Participants reported that the spiritual and physical living conditions for regional residents, especially ethnic minority group members, have improved as a result, with poor households accounting for only 7.24 percent, lower than the national average. Key rural infrastructure, such as roads, electricity networks and schools have been upgraded and developed. Local residents, especially ethnic minorities, have gained better access to housing, agricultural and residential land, clean water, and loans to develop business and production. Policies on poverty reduction, education, vocational training and culture in areas where ethnic minorities live have also proven effective, improving the living conditions of locals. The Steering Committee said it has also tried its best to improve the cultural life and educational development in the region. Speaking at the event, Chairman of the NA’s Ethnic Council Ksor Phuoc urged the committee and authorities of regional localities to tap the region’s potential and strengths to promote large-scale agricultural production, focusing on creating trademarks for local products. He also emphasised the need to accelerate the restructuring of the regional economy towards developing agricultural services to generate more jobs and improve residents’ incomes. Nguyen Phong Quang, deputy head of the Steering Committee, called for more suitable policies and mechanisms from the Government and the NA to help local ethnic people to boost their economy, respond to climate change, and accelerate the construction of new-style rural areas. Vietnam now has 130 policies aimed at ethnic minorities, helping improve local livelihoods and strengthening national solidarity. Vietnam, Pakistan seek to foster comprehensive ties Pakistani Deputy Foreign Minister Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry spoke highly of Vietnam’s stable political environment and said there was still a huge potential for both nations to intensify their links, especially in the fields of economics, trade and tourism. During his meeting with the newly-appointed Vietnamese Ambassador to Pakistan Nguyen Xuan Luu in Islamabad on October 14, Chaudhry vowed that his ministry would provide support and work closely with the diplomat to strengthen the bilateral traditional friendship. He said he hoped Vietnam-Pakistan relations would be upgraded in the future. On his part, Luu congratulated Pakistan on 17-year-old Pakistani Malala Yousafzai winning the Nobel Peace Prize, the youngest awardee in 113 years. He said this proved that Pakistan was a peace-loving country. The Vietnamese diplomat underlined the need to enhance political, economic and trade ties between the two countries in the future through high-ranking delegation exchanges and political consultations in the Joint Vietnam-Pakistan Committee. He also discussed with his host how to improve their comprehensive bilateral relations in the future. Economic cooperation in recent years developed substantially, with two-way trade increasing to 390 million USD in 2013 from 149 million USD in 2009. The two sides also agreed to continue to support each other at regional and global forums. Vietnam, China seek stronger military partnership Defence Minister General Phung Quang Thanh is paying visit to China to cement friendship and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries’ armies and people. The Vietnamese official and his Chinese counterpart Chang Wanquan will discuss measures to increase bilateral defence ties for the maintenance of peace, stability and affiliation between the two sides. The visit from October 16-18 also aims to create common awareness of regional and international issues, contributing to the healthy and sustainable development of the Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic partnership. Furthering defence partnership is one of the key pillars in the relations between the two Parties and States. During the visit, the two ministries will initial a technical memorandum on the establishment of a direct contact line. VN urges focus on efficiency in legislative dialogues Viet Nam has proposed that an upcoming meeting of senior officials from the parliaments from many countries focuses mainly on the efficiency of parliamentary consultations. The proposal was made by Nguyen Hanh Phuc, Chairman of the National Assembly Office, in talks held with representatives from the standing committee of the Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments (ASGP) in Geneva on Tuesday. The purpose of the talks was to identify topics for the 132nd meeting of the association (ASGP-132) scheduled for March 2015 in Ha Noi. The talks took place on the sidelines of the ongoing 131st Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, during which Phuc proposed that the main theme for the ASGP-132 should be the "efficiency of the parliamentary consultative model." He said this would provide an opportunity to evaluate the current consultative apparatus between legislative bodies and draw out criteria to set up suitable consultative units to improve the quality and efficiency of parliaments. ASGP is a consultative organ under the IPU that plays a vital role in ensuring efficient operation of the union. The association will hold its official meeting in Geneva today. Source: VNS/VNA/VOV