Ambassador to France Đinh Toàn Thắng in an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency in Paris ahead of Party General Secretary and State President Tô Lâm’s attendance at the upcoming 19th Francophonie Summit and his official visit to France. — VNA/VNS Photo Thu Hà

PARIS — For the past 30 years, Vietnamese high-ranking leaders have consistently participated in Francophonie Summits, demonstrating the country's commitment to cooperating with the International Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF) and its member countries, Ambassador to France Đinh Toàn Thắng has said.

In an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency in Paris ahead of Party General Secretary and State President Tô Lâm’s attendance at the upcoming 19th Francophonie Summit and his official visit to France, the diplomat said the presence of Vietnamese top leader at the summit for the first time marks a new milestone, affirming the nation's highest-level commitment to the development of the Francophone community, as well as showcasing its efforts to enhance the image and presence of the Francophone community in the Asia-Pacific region.

This also illustrates Việt Nam's willingness to act as a bridge to promote the relationship between the Francophone community and the region, thereby elevating both national and community standing on the international stage.

According to him, this high-level diplomatic activity will play an important role in implementing the foreign policy of multilateralisation and diversification, and active international integration, attaching importance to multilateralism, and demonstrating Việt Nam's active and responsible membership in the international community in general and in the Francophone community in particular.

Through interactions and exchanges with leaders of the OIF and member countries, partners have recognised Việt Nam's commitment and contributions to preparing for this summit, and showed their hope that based on the solid foundation that the OIF and Việt Nam have built together, Việt Nam and the Francophone community will continue to nurture and elevate their long-term and sustainable cooperation and partnership in the coming time, stated Thắng.

Regarding Việt Nam’s role in the OIF, the diplomat said that for years, Việt Nam has fully and effectively participated in most of the priority issues of the community, from the planning of cooperation strategies to the promotion of reforms. As a result, it is regarded as a key player and an important voice of the OIF in the Asia-Pacific, reflected through the fact that Việt Nam has been repeatedly entrusted by member countries to hold important positions within the organisation.

In terms of French language teaching, it has implemented numerous initiatives and projects supported by member countries, particularly France, Canada, Belgium, and Switzerland. Since 2014, Việt Nam has proactively made voluntary contributions to the Francophone University Agency (AUF), thus helping improve French language education at 47 Vietnamese universities that are AUF members.

As for economic cooperation, Việt Nam was the country that initiated economic cooperation within the Francophonie community at the 7th Francophonie Summit held in 1997 in Hà Nội. As Chair of the OIF’s economic committee, it successfully coordinated the drafting of the Francophone Economic Development Strategy for 2020-2025. The country was also the first stop of a Francophone business delegation in a series of activities to implement this strategy.

To enhance cooperation between Việt Nam and the OIF, Thang stressed the need to create significant changes in key areas that meet the development needs of both the community and individual countries.

In this spirit, the two sides should establish a comprehensive policy to guide cooperation toward developing member countries, and effectively combine this with the participation of developed nations, he added. — VNS