 New York (VNA) – Vietnam has made efforts to accomplish its double role as a member and chair of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), a Vietnamese representative to the UN said.
Ambassador Le Luong Minh, Head of Vietnamese Delegation to the UN and Representative of Vietnam at the UNSC, talked with the Vietnam News Agency about Vietnam’s participation in the UNSC’s activities in July, when the nation acted as chair of the council.
The ambassador cited Vietnam’s careful preparations in terms of personnel, knowledge and experiences, as a reason behind the country’s successful performance at the council.
“Right after Vietnam gained its seat at the UNSC in October 2007, along with preparations for the council’s activities in general, we mapped out a roadmap and quickly started preparations for July activities, when Vietnam holds the rotational presidency of the council,” he said.
In addition, a close co-ordination between representative agencies in foreign countries and the Party and the State’s appropriate guidelines have been helpful, Minh said.
The Vietnamese delegation to the UN has received timely instructions from high-ranking officials while dealing with important and sensitive issues, including nuclear issue in Iran and dispute between Thailand and Cambodia, he said.
“The fact that Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia Khiem directly chaired an open debate on children and armed conflicts, which was held at Vietnam ’s initiative, was lauded by member countries and public opinion,” he said.
In July, the UNSC discussed issues related to operations of UN missions in Cote d’Ivoire, the Central African Republic and Chad, West Africa, Sudan, Darfur, Ethiopia and Eritrea, Georgia, Kosovo, Afghanistan and Nepal.
During the month, the UNSC chair was required to prepare the council’s annual report for submission to the upcoming session of the UN General Assembly.
At the request of some member countries, the UNSC resolved a number of unscheduled issues, such as instability and increased violence in Zimbabwe and the situation in Myanmar.
The council also organised open debates on the Middle East issue at Vietnam’s initiatives during the month.
According to unofficial statistics, the council held 40 ambassador-level meetings and adopted six resolutions, including those to extend UN missions’ mandate in Cote d’Ivoire, Darfur and Nepal.
The council also adopted the UNSC Chair’s statements on children and armed conflicts, attacks on the joint United Nations-African Union Mission in Dafur and the situation in Afghanistan.
It also adopted five press releases on attacks on diplomatic agencies, civilians, peace-keeping soldiers, UN employees and humanitarian workers.-Enditem
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