Vietnamese Ambassador to Austria Vũ Lê Thái Hoàng and Tobias Lang, Director of the Austrian Centre for Peace. — VNA/VNS Photo

VIENNA — Vietnamese Ambassador to Austria Vũ Lê Thái Hoàng on Wednesday (local time) held a working session with Tobias Lang, Director of the Austrian Centre for Peace (ACP), in Vienna to enhance Việt Nam–Austria cooperation in training and capacity-building for personnel participating in United Nations Peacekeeping missions.

As a neutral country and a centre of multilateral diplomacy and UN organisations, Austria has actively contributed to UN peacekeeping operations since 1960, deploying more than 100,000 military personnel, police officers, and civilian staff to over 100 missions, mainly in Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.

At the meeting, Hoàng stressed that Việt Nam consistently pursues a foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, cooperation, and development, diversification and multilateralisation of external relations, proactive and active international integration, stronger defence and security diplomacy, and active, effective participation in UN peacekeeping activities.

Vietnamese military officers began joining UN peacekeeping missions in 2014, while police officers started participating in 2022 in areas such as Abyei, the Central African Republic, and South Sudan. Việt Nam’s law on participation in UN peacekeeping forces officially came into effect on January 1, 2026.

The ambassador noted that Việt Nam highly values international cooperation in general, and cooperation with Austria in particular, in training and improving peacekeeping capacity, especially in foreign languages, operational skills, specialised peacekeeping knowledge, understanding of international law and culture, and the application of technology to meet UN standards.

For his part, Tobias Lang expressed his strong impression of Việt Nam’s sound policy direction, remarkable efforts, and encouraging achievements in participating in peacekeeping operations, which have helped enhance its image and reputation as a peace-loving country and a responsible member of the international community.

With its extensive experience and strong network of respected experts and trainers, the ACP is ready to cooperate with and support Việt Nam in organising tailored training and capacity-building courses. These may include survival skills, climate adaptation, strengthening capacities for female officers, and the use of technology in peacekeeping operations, as well as courses and seminars on mediation and conflict resolution in international disputes.

He expressed confidence that bilateral cooperation in UN peacekeeping holds significant potential and should be advanced in a practical and substantive manner, thereby contributing positively to global peace, stability, and sustainable development. — VNS