Vietnamese diplomats and honorary consuls at the Conference of Honorary Consuls on Thursday. — VNA/VNS Photo

QUẢNG NINH — Diplomats on Thursday called for expanding Việt Nam's honorary consul network and reshaping cooperation with honorary consuls, saying the move would open new channels for trade and investment while strengthening the protection of Vietnamese citizens abroad.

The remark was made at the country's second Conference of Honorary Consuls in the northern province of Quảng Ninh.

Deputy Foreign Minister Lê Thị Thu Hằng said the gathering – the second of its kind, following an inaugural conference in 2021 – was an opportunity to evaluate the network's performance and identify new areas of cooperation between Vietnamese agencies and honorary consuls.

Since the first conference in 2021, Việt Nam has appointed 22 new honorary consuls and reappointed 32 others, bringing the network to 48 people. They are based in Europe (20), the Asia-Pacific (11), the Middle East and Africa (10), and the Americas (7).

Honorary consuls are not salaried state officials and cover their own costs, but have drawn on their personal standing and resources to support Việt Nam's interests.

Deputy Foreign Minister Lê Thị Thu Hằng speaks at the conference. — VNA/VNS Photo

"Honorary consuls did not hesitate in the face of danger. They helped evacuate and protect Vietnamese citizens during the COVID-19 pandemic and the conflicts in Russia-Ukraine and the Middle East," said Doãn Hoàng Minh, director of the Foreign Ministry's Consular Department.

The official also highlighted several contributions to economic diplomacy. The honorary consul in Cyprus pushed for ratification of the EU-Việt Nam Investment Protection Agreement, the consul in Aichi, Japan, helped establish an Aichi-Việt Nam friendship association, and the consul in Minas Gerais, Brazil, campaigned to have a street named 'Socialist Republic of Vietnam' in the city of Belo Horizonte.

The Vietnamese state and the Foreign Ministry have awarded Friendship Orders and commendations from the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister to several honorary consuls in recognition of their work, Minh said.

The Ministry has also secured a new government decree, Decree 221, that for the first time allows honorary consuls to be considered for electronic visa-exemption cards valid for up to three years, Minh said. The Consular Department has recently proposed issuing 34 such cards.

Honorary consuls from Nepal, Brazil and New Caledonia shared their experiences at the conference. Dinh Jean Pierre, Việt Nam's honorary consul in New Caledonia, stressed the importance of close, transparent coordination with overseas Vietnamese associations on citizen protection, as well as preserving national cultural identity.

The Consular Department said it would continue refining regulations, seek out capable candidates to expand the network further, and give honorary consuls more information on economic potential and investment opportunities in Vietnamese localities and businesses. — VNS