 Vice NA Chairwoman Tong Thi Phong delivers a speech at the plenary session of the IPU-141 in Belgrade, Serbia, on October 15, 2019. (Photo: VOV) |
Vice NA Chairwoman Tong Thi Phong made that statement at the plenary session of the 141st Assembly of the International Parliamentary Union (IPU) on Tuesday in Belgrade, Serbia, themed “Strengthening international law: Parliamentary roles and mechanisms, and the contribution of regional cooperation”.
Ms. Phong said Vietnam will serve as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for the next two years, ASEAN Chair next year, and Chair of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) in 2020.
Therefore, she said, Vietnam will continue to promote multilateralism and fair and equal dialogue, handle global issues and regional conflicts, and foster peace on the basis of international law while enhancing regional cooperation in perfecting mechanisms for ensuring equitable and balanced interests for all relevant parties.
She suggested some ways to boost respect for international law including respecting the UN Charter, complying with international law, and common principles and standards of conduct, and bringing into play the role of cooperation, dialogue, and information-sharing mechanisms to improve mutual understanding, trust and respect to seek peaceful solutions to regional disputes and urgent challenges.
Madam Phong underscored the importance of stepping up the ratification and participation of international treaties and agreements and multilateral legal documents and aligning each country’s laws with international treaties they have engaged in.
She said it’s necessary for parliaments to increase monitoring the implementation of important agreements reached through multilateral negotiations and called for parliamentary diplomacy to be supported and the IPU’s role to be further promoted for the sake of global peace and democracy.
The Vietnamese leader underlined the need to strengthen the IPU’s cooperation mechanisms with its member parliaments, the UN and international organisations, and connectivity among countries and parliaments in making policies on climate change response.