Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn (left) and UN Secretary-General António Guterres had talks in Geneva on Monday (local time). — VNA/VNS Photo

GENEVA — Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn on Monday (local time) met with leaders of the United Nations (UN) and heads of delegations to the 55th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva, while attending the session.

At the meeting with UN Secretary-General António Guterres, Sơn affirmed that Việt Nam always attaches importance to and supports the central role of the UN in the global governance system and in solving common challenges. He called on the UN to continue to support Việt Nam in developing the country and contributing to building a peaceful, stable, and resilient Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) community.

The Vietnamese official welcomed the initiatives of Secretary-General Guterres and shared Việt Nam's recent efforts such as adopting the roadmap to realise the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, and implementing commitments on climate change at the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP), including the implementation of the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP). Sơn also announced that Việt Nam would continue to send officers and soldiers to the UN peacekeeping force in the coming time, including the police.

Guterres expressed his admiration for Việt Nam's achievements and thanked the country for its great cooperation with and support to UN priorities, especially in participating in peacekeeping, implementing the Sustainable Development Goals, supporting the reform of the Security Council and international financial institutions, and pioneering the implementation of climate change commitments.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn and President of the UN General Assembly Dennis Francis. — VNA/VNS Photo

At the meeting with President of the UN General Assembly Dennis Francis, Sơn highly appreciated the President’s role, especially in the context of the complicated world situation, affirming that under the leadership of the President, the UN had made many positive contributions to promoting international law, maintaining peace, stability, and development cooperation among countries, as well as supporting the efforts of countries, including Việt Nam, in handling urgent challenges related to climate change and rising sea levels. On this occasion, he invited the official to visit Việt Nam in 2024.

Francis affirmed that Việt Nam had made practical contributions to the work of the UN in general as well as to his office in particular, including sending staff to work at the office.

He agreed with Việt Nam on concerns about peace, respect for international law, and response to climate change, emphasising that in the world’s complicated situation, the UN and its member states needed to join hands to handle emerging international issues and focus on promoting the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.

In that spirit, the UN planned to organise a “Sustainability Week” in April 2024 with five main topics of tourism, infrastructure, energy, sustainable debt handling and transport, as a response to the “Future Summit” scheduled to be held in September 2024. He said he looked forward to Việt Nam's active participation.

The Vietnamese Foreign Minister also met with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir Abdollahian, during which Sơn highly appreciated the development of the Việt Nam-Iran relations in recent times, especially high-level contacts between the two countries. He said he hoped that the two Foreign Ministries would continue to coordinate closely and together with relevant agencies to fully and effectively implement agreements reached during the visit to Iran by National Assembly Chairman Vương Đình Huệ in August 2023, as well as at the meeting between Vice State President Võ Thị Ánh Xuân and First Vice President of Iran Mohammad Mokhber in January 2024.

Sơn proposed the two sides facilitate the operation of the two countries' businesses, calling on Iran to support the development and open the market for Vietnamese Halal products and strengthen cooperation in multilateral forums, including the UN.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian affirmed that Việt Nam was an important partner of Iran in Southeast Asia. He said he hoped that the two countries would continue to strive to increase two-way trade turnover to commensurate with the bilateral relations’ potential, and enhance cooperation in education and training.

The two sides also discussed international issues of mutual concern, including the situation in the Middle East, and agreed to strengthen cooperation to contribute to peace, stability, and development in the region and around the world. The Iranian diplomat also invited his Vietnamese counterpart to visit Iran soon.

Meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan Murat Abugaliuly Nurtleu, Sơn affirmed that Việt Nam attached great importance to its traditional friendship and multifaceted cooperation with Kazakhstan, an important partner of Việt Nam in Central Asia.

He welcomed the results of Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's visit to Việt Nam in August 2023 and expressed his hope the two sides would continue to coordinate closely to implement the agreements reached during the visit.

For his part, the Kazakhstani leader affirmed that his country attached special importance to the relations with Việt Nam and agreed that the two sides needed to promote cooperation and support each other at international forums.

The two sides agreed that it was necessary to increase the exchange of delegations at all levels, especially high-level ones; further promote cooperation in the fields of economics - trade – investment; and create more favourable conditions for transport, tourism and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.

The same day, Sơn also met separately with Moroccan Justice Minister Abdellatif Ouahbi and Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi. During the meetings, he affirmed the common stance of ASEAN and Việt Nam on solving disputes peacefully based on international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), ensuring safety and security of navigation and overflight in the East Sea (South China Sea). — VNS