(VOVWORLD) - National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan returned to Hanoi Tuesday, concluding official visits to Morocco and France, a working visit to the European Parliament, and attendance at the 140th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). The trip gained positive results, affirmed Vietnam’s proactive role in resolving regional and global challenges, deepened Vietnam’s relations with partners, and promoted the status of the Vietnamese National Assembly internationally.
 National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan delivers a speech at the plenary of the 140th IPU Assembly
|
Effective meetings
Between March 28 and April 8, Chairwoman Ngan attended multiple bilateral meetings. In Morocco and France, she met with high-ranking leaders for frank, straight-forward talks to promote parliamentary and national relations at global forums.
Ms. Ngan met with France’s top 15 businesses and parliamentarians to discuss economic and trade policies and orientations. She had a meeting with some 700 overseas Vietnamese in France to mark the 100th anniversary of the Association of Vietnamese People in France and attended the 11th Conference on cooperation between Vietnamese and French localities.
In Brussels Ngan paid a working visit to the European Parliament and the European Commission to lobby the signing of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement. Leaders of the European Parliament and Belgium confirmed their support for the free trade agreement.
 NA Chairwoman Ngan met with IPU Chairwoman Gabriela Cuevas Barron
|
Strengthening Vietnamese National Assembly’s status
After her visit to the European Parliament, Ngan attended the 140th IPU Assembly in Qatar with 1,600 delegates from 162 countries, including 75 other parliament heads.
In a speech before the plenary session of the 140th IPU Assembly, Ms. Ngan praised the IPU and its recommendations to its members. She touched upon global issues in relation with the situation in Vietnam. She confirmed Vietnam’s commitment to being an active member of the IPU and working with other IPU members for global peace and development.
On the sidelines of the IPU Assembly, Ms. Ngan held bilateral meetings with parliamentary leaders of Qatar, Russia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Sri Lanka, and Georgia, and IPU Secretary General Martin Chungong. The Secretary General lauded Vietnam’s efforts to realize commitments of the Hanoi Declaration themed “Sustainable Development Goals: Turning Words into Action”, adopted at IPU 132 in Vietnam in 2015. He spoke highly of the translation into Vietnamese of the IPU/UNDP self-assessment Toolkit on sustainable development.
Chairwoman Ngan’s trip promoted parliamentary cooperation in implementing agreements between Vietnam and other countries.