General Secretary of the Communist Party of Việt Nam Central Committee and President Tô Lâm addresses the high-level General Debate of the UN General Assembly’s 81st session in New York on September 22, 2026. VNA/VNS Photo

NEW YORK — General Secretary of the Communist Party of Việt Nam Central Committee and President Tô Lâm used his address at the high-level General Debate of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly’s 81st session in New York on September 22 (local time) to reaffirm Việt Nam’s consistent commitment to peace, cooperation and development, said Assoc. Prof. Dr Bùi Hoài Sơn, Vice Chairman of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Publicity.

In an interview recently granted to the Vietnam News Agency, Sơn said the speech carries one consistent message: humanity shouldn't treat confrontation as inevitable in a fast-changing world. Instead, it should proactively manage change through trust, international law, dialogue, cooperation, and shared responsibility.

According to him, the speech didn't dodge the world's harder realities today, including conflict risk, an arms race, economic fragmentation, supply chain disruptions, climate change, pandemics, inequality and the risks emerging from new technology. Its takeaway wasn't pessimism, though, but a call for responsibility and action.

One line crystallises that spirit: "Change is inevitable, but conflict and confrontation are not". The framing pairs a clear-eyed view of competition with a case for keeping room open for dialogue and cooperation. It concedes that power balances are shifting, interests are diverging and competition is intensifying, but insists governments and people still have the ability to choose how they respond. Rebuilding trust, in this reading, is what keeps competition from tipping into confrontation, differences from hardening into conflict, and technology from cutting new divides.

Through the message, Việt Nam reaffirmed its consistent commitment to peace, cooperation and development, as well as its continued emphasis on the UN Charter, international law and multilateralism, not just a statement of foreign policy, but a reflection of a country shaped by war that has learned to value independence, peace and reconciliation.

Việt Nam's contribution to the global debate is direct: a durable international order can't rest on the balance of power alone. It needs rules, trust, responsibility and benefits people can actually feel, the official said.

What stands out most to Sơn is that the speech keeps people at its centre. Restoring trust, reforming global institutional mechanisms, pursuing sustainable development and governing technology all come back to one question: are people safer, freer and better off? That, he said, gives Việt Nam's message a clear cultural and humanitarian edge on the world political stage.

The Vice Chairman flagged three points worth particular attention. The first is the idea of restoring trust and managing differences responsibly. The world isn't short of forums or commitments, but it's short of trust. Without it, differences turn into confrontation, competition slips out of control, and international law gets applied inconsistently. Therefore, maintaining dialogue, honouring commitments, respecting sovereignty and settling disputes through peaceful means are practical necessities.

The second is the concept of equitable, humane, inclusive and sustainable development. That tracks with Việt Nam's own development thinking: growth rate alone doesn't measure progress; quality of life, development opportunity, social equity, environment and the ability to ensure that no one is left behind do too.

The speech's emphasis on respecting each country's history, culture and development stage rules out a one-size-fits-all model. Nations should choose their own path while holding to shared standards of peace, cooperation and responsibility, he noted.

The third is the linkage between Việt Nam's strategic autonomy and a new growth model built on productivity, quality, added value, science –technology, innovation and digital transformation tied to cultural development, social progress, equity and environmental protection.

The point, domestically and globally, is that Việt Nam doesn't equate autonomy with isolation. It's the capacity to stand on its own strengths and engage the world on more equal, proactive terms. A country with strong internal capacity, a distinct cultural identity, scientific and technological depth, and broad social consensus adapts to external shocks more easily, Son said.

Overall, he perceived that the four orientations in the speech, including trust and international law, inclusive development, technology governance, and stronger multilateralism, share a single philosophy: managing change so that development serves people, peace and shared interests. That is how Việt Nam positions itself as an active member, a reliable partner a responsible player globally.

In his view, the speech's approach to technology is about proactively shaping technology governance rather than merely passively adapting. What matters isn't just which technologies Việt Nam has, but the values behind how they're designed, used and regulated. Governance frameworks need to be inclusive, safe, transparent and responsible, while respecting national and digital sovereignty and each country’s right to pursue its own development path.

This is particularly important with regard to artificial intelligence as algorithms embed themselves deeper in production, education, culture, communications, public services and even how societies form perceptions, Sơn went on.

The speech also calls for developing countries to have a real say in rule-making, plus support for infrastructure, digital capacity and access to scientific – technological gains. The risk otherwise: if one part of the world controls data, computing infrastructure, platforms and standard-setting while the rest are just users, the digital divide hardens into a new development gap.

Global technology governance, Sơn said, has to be tied to fair access to opportunity, knowledge and resources.

For Việt Nam, he said that's both an integration requirement and a domestic task. The country needs to push innovation, digital infrastructure and a digital workforce, while building matching governance capacity, including timely legislation, digital ethics, data security, protection of children and vulnerable groups, broader digital literacy and a healthier cyberspace culture. The more powerful the technology, the greater the responsibility it demands culturally, socially and humanly.

Việt Nam's hosting of the UN Convention against Cybercrime signing in Hà Nội in 2025, cited in the speech, backs that up, Sơn said, adding that it is the evidence the country wants to help set common norms for cyberspace, not just benefit from technological progress.

The goal, he added, is a safer, fairer, more humane digital order where technology serves people and shared development. — VNA/VNS