Vietnam, 2007

Mr. President, at the

outset, permit me to extend to you my warmest

congratulations on your election as President of the

General Assembly at its sixty-second session. I believe

that with your immense competence, you will lead this

session to a successful conclusion. I highly commend

Mr. Ban Ki-moon for his important contributions as the

Secretary-General of the United Nations. I respectfully

convey to all delegates and, through them, to the

people of all Member countries, the greetings of

friendship from the Vietnamese people.

When humankind entered the new millennium,

we all wished for a more peaceful world, more friendly

international relations and a better life. Nearly a decade

has elapsed, but that wish has not come true. We are

still living in a world blessed with numerous

opportunities and at the same time beset with

adversities and challenges. It is a blessing that since

the establishment of the United Nations, humankind

has not experienced any more world wars. However,

local wars and conflicts, international terrorism and the

continuing arms race, including the nuclear arms race,

remain daunting threats to our world today.

Thanks to the miraculous scientific and

technological achievements, human living conditions

have improved continuously. However, there remains a

bitter reality that the gap in living standards between

nations and population groups is increasing. Nearly

1 billion people are still living in extreme poverty. At

the same time, many pressing global issues have

emerged, of which epidemics, environmental pollution

and climate change have proved to be serious threats to

human life.

We note with satisfaction the rapid proliferation

of regional and global cooperation arrangements. In the

meantime, the world is yet to be free from tense

confrontation, acts of unilateral imposition, violations

of national independence and sovereignty, inequality

and unfair treatment in international relations.

All these require that together we make greater

efforts to maintain peace and stability in all parts of the

world, promote equal cooperative relations between

and among States, and ensure an international

environment conducive to the development of each and

every nation.

In the face of enormous challenges in the new

millennium, peoples of the world had high expectations

of the United Nations and, in that connection, Viet

Nam fully associates itself with the orientations

charted by the United Nations summits in 2000 and

2005 for the work of the Organization in consolidating

peace, security, cooperation and development.

We hope that the United Nations will, together

with Member States, intensify efforts to establish long-

lasting peace in the Middle East - including efforts

aimed at an appropriate solution to the Israel-Palestine

conflict - put an end to conflicts and violence in a

number of African countries, restore stability in Iraq

and Afghanistan and control and prevent the

proliferation of nuclear weapons. Viet Nam supports

the settlement of the Korean Peninsula issues through

dialogue, in conformity with international law, and

shares the Korean people’s desire for peaceful

reunification.

The United Nations Millennium Declaration of

2000 and its policy of promoting sustainable

development and ensuring the harmonious combination

of economic growth with social equity and

environmental protection have elicited practical

responses from Member States. Viet Nam hopes that

the United Nations will play a more active role in that

process in order to create further opportunities for

underdeveloped countries to escape poverty and

advance with the mainstream countries of the world. In

that light, Viet Nam hopes that the Doha Round will be

concluded soon to facilitate a fair international trading

system.

Viet Nam strongly supports development

cooperation between countries and the establishment of

equal international relations in economic, financial and

trade areas with special attention paid to the needs of

developing and least developed countries, including the

removal of imposed economic blockades and

embargoes. We hope that the United Nations will have

more resources for development cooperation, with

priority given to the implementation of programmes of

action on poverty reduction, advancement of women,

child care, population planning and HIV/AIDS

prevention. Viet Nam strongly supports common

efforts, especially the efforts of the United Nations, to

protect the environment and to better respond to

climate change.

For the United Nations to fulfil its noble mandate

in a vastly changed world, the question of United

Nations reform has been raised and keenly discussed.

Viet Nam holds that the process of reform should be

intensified and goes along with the common

understanding that the reforms should ensure the broad

participation of all Member States and should be

carried out in a transparent manner. Reform should also

build upon past experience and, at the same, have a

comprehensive forward-looking vision.

In 1945, the United Nations was founded, right at

a time when the Vietnamese people had just gained

their independence. Stemming from the belief in the

purposes and principles of the United Nations and the

desire to contribute to the work of that new

international organization, as early as in January 1946,

President Ho Chi Minh, the founder of the new

Vietnamese State, wrote to the first session of the

United Nations General Assembly, stating clearly, “Our

nation has gained independence and earnestly requests

that you recognize our independence and admit our

nation into the United Nations”.

Regrettably, it was not until 1977 that Viet Nam

became a full Member of the United Nations. Over the

past 30 years in its capacity as a United Nations

Member, Viet Nam has always worked actively for

peace, stability, cooperation and development in the

world. Viet Nam has made significant contributions to

turning South-East Asia from a war-divided region of

confrontation into one of peace, friendship and

cooperation, which is now moving towards an

Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN)

Community based on the three pillars: political and

security matters, economic matters, and cultural and

social matters.

It is our consistent position to support efforts

towards the peaceful settlement of conflicts, upholding

national independence and state sovereignty, promoting

development programmes, tackling global social issues

and establishing equal international political and

economic relations for mutual benefit.

Viet Nam will continue with its policy of being a

friend and reliable partner to all countries, striving for

peace, independence, cooperation and development.

We have established diplomatic relations with 174

countries and economic and trade ties with almost all

countries and territories in the world. Viet Nam is an

active member of many other regional and global

organizations and forums. Most recently, Viet Nam

joined the World Trade Organization as its 150th

member. Viet Nam has been elected to the governing

positions of many United Nations bodies and is now

working closely with United Nations development

organizations to implement the “One United Nations”

initiative in Viet Nam as a pilot country.

We highly appreciate the assistance and support

extended by United Nations organizations to Viet Nam.

Our significant achievements in socio-economic

development have enabled Viet Nam to fulfil a number

of Millennium Development Goals ahead of schedule,

especially in poverty reduction. That is also

attributable to the support of the international

community.

We consider it important to promote South-South

cooperation. Despite being a poor country, we

participated actively in the tripartite cooperation

arrangement between Viet Nam and a United Nations

agency to support African countries in the agricultural

sector. So far, that programme has produced

encouraging results.

With the desire to make further contributions to

the work of the international community, in 1997 Viet

Nam decided to run for a non-permanent seat on the

Security Council for the 2008-2009 term. I take the

opportunity to sincerely thank the Asian Group for

endorsing Viet Nam as the only candidate of the

continent. We are also grateful to other Member States

for their broad support.

Viet Nam is fully aware of the great honour and

heavy responsibility of being a non-permanent member

of the Security Council, a body entrusted with the

primary mission of maintaining international peace and

security. If elected, Viet Nam will fully adhere to the

purposes and principles enshrined in the United

Nations Charter and will do its utmost to cooperate

with other members to fulfil that important task.

Viet Nam will work closely with other countries

to reduce tension and to prevent and peacefully settle

conflicts in different parts of the world. We will fulfil

our obligations as a party to all major international

conventions and treaties on the non-proliferation of

weapons of mass destruction. We condemn, and are

also committed to the elimination of, international

terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and in

accordance with international law.

Viet Nam welcomes and is willing to participate

in mechanisms both within and outside the Security

Council to increase assistance aimed at the national

reconstruction and development of conflict-ridden

countries. As a nation that has experienced post-war

reconstruction and has accomplished important

achievements on its development path, Viet Nam also

wishes to share its experiences with other countries

throughout the world.

Mindful of the active role played by United

Nations peacekeeping operations, Viet Nam has made

financial contributions to and participated in a number

of United Nations activities to restore peace in various

countries. We are completing the preparatory process

for our effective participation in United Nations

peacekeeping operations, in keeping with our

circumstances and capacity.

We share the view that, if the Security Council is

to work more effectively, it must be further reformed to

achieve greater representativeness and greater

democracy in its working methods. We also support

strengthening the Council’s relationships with regional

organizations. It is therefore encouraging that, at the

present session, the Association of Southeast Asian

Nations and the United Nations just signed a

cooperation agreement.

I believe that, as a result of its open and

constructive foreign policy and its active contributions

to international peace and security and development

cooperation, Viet Nam will receive full support from

all Member States for its candidature for a

non-permanent seat on the Security Council for the

term 2008-2009. We will do whatever we can to fulfil

that important aspiration.

Viet Nam will always be an active, constructive,

cooperative and responsible member of the

international community, living up to the expectations

of all Member States. On behalf of the Government and

the people of Viet Nam, I express the sincere hope that

the sixty-second session of the General Assembly will

be successful, meeting the expectations of the peoples

of the world in the service of peace, security,

cooperation and development.