VN insists on peace protection, comprehensive and thorough disarmament

VNGOVNet – The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) convened its annual session on March 12 at the UN Headquarters in Geneva (Switzerland) to discuss international human rights-related issues and perfect its institution set up in the 2005 Conference of the UN General Assembly. The meeting was attended by over 100 delegations of many countries, international organizations and non-governmental organizations, including over 60 Deputy PM and Ministerial-level groups.

March 15, 2007 8:17 AM GMT+7

Mr. Phạm Bình Minh, Foreign Minister Assistant, Head of the Vietnamese delegation, delivered on March 13 a speech emphasizing that to strengthen international cooperation in ensuring people’s interests and improving the UNHRC’s performance, it is necessary to thoroughly consider all rights in civil, political, economic, cultural and social fields and the right of speech. Human rights should not be used for political purposes, he stressed. Mr. Phạm Bình Minh also affirmed the Vietnamese State’s policy to regard human beings the motive force and target of the development process. To increase democracy by building and perfecting a law-ruled State is an important orientation for Vietnam’s development in the coming years, stressed the Vietnamese Foreign Minister Assistant. He added that Vietnam always advocates international cooperation on the basis of equality, constructiveness, mutual respect and understanding for the common cause of reinforcing and protecting human rights.

On the same day, addressing on behalf of Vietnam at the annual disarmament meeting as the only global negotiation agency in disarmament with 66 members (including Vietnam), Mr. Phạm Bình Minh confirmed that Vietnam persists in its consistent policy to protect peace, support comprehensive and thorough disarmament, protest the proliferation of mass destruction weapons. This policy is reflected in the fact that Vietnam has joined and observed many important international conventions on disarmament and commitments on a nuclear weapon-free Southeast Asia. Recently, the country has approved the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty and will sign an Additional Protocol to Safeguards Agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

By Nguyên Hồ