Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính and a VILAR delegation led by Director Sidelnikov Nikolai Ivanovich paid tribute to President Hồ Chí Minh at the mausoleum on Sunday. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính on Sunday attended a conference reviewing the 30-year cooperation between the President Hồ Chí Minh Mausoleum Management Board and the All-Russian Scientific Research Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (VILAR) in preserving the body of the late Vietnamese leader.

In 1992, when the agreement between Việt Nam and the former Soviet Union became invalid, with permission from the Vietnamese and Russian Governments, the Mausoleum Management Board and VILAR switched to direct cooperation in preserving the body of the President.

Addressing the conference, PM Chính said when President Hồ Chí Minh passed away in 1969 at the age of 79, with the endless love and gratitude for the leader and to realise the strong aspirations of the entire Party, army and people, the Politburo and the Party Central Committee decided to preserve his body and build a mausoleum so that his reputation, great career, and enormous devotion would exist forever in the hearts and minds of every Vietnamese person and become an everlasting symbol of national solidarity and unity.

Braving the fierce war, experts from the Soviet Union worked side by side with Việt Nam’s military officers and soldiers to make tireless efforts to preserve the body in the best possible condition.

The PM described the achievements so far as a vivid illustration of Việt Nam’s close cooperation and friendship with the Soviet Union in the past and Russia at present.

On behalf of the Vietnamese Party and State leaders, he appreciated the cooperation and assistance from the Soviet Union, now Russia, especially the VILAR scientists and medical experts, for this “particularly sacred and noble” task.

PM Chính also spoke highly of the dedications and contributions of Vietnamese scientists, ministries, sectors, localities, and the Mausoleum Management Board and High Command.

The long-term preservation of President Hồ Chí Minh’s body, along with the promotion of the mausoleum’s political and cultural values, is a special political task holding great significance to the building and protection of the socialist Việt Nam, he said, adding that since its inauguration, the mausoleum has served more than 60 million visitors, including over 10 million international guests from most countries around the world and international organisations.

The Government leader expressed his hope that the Mausoleum Management Board and VILAR will keep exerting efforts to overcome difficulties and challenges and effectively coordinate to fulfill the tasks.

At the conference, he presented the third-class Labour Order to VILAR, the Friendship Order to the chief trade representative of Russia in Việt Nam, and certificates of merit to 12 collectives and individuals from the Mausoleum Management Board in recognition of their contributions.

Prior to the event, PM Chính and a VILAR delegation led by Director Sidelnikov Nikolai Ivanovich paid tribute to President Hồ Chí Minh at the mausoleum. He also hosted a reception for the delegation. — VNS