Your Excellency, I am greatly honoured for this hospitable reception and to be able to share with the government and the people of Vietnam this moment in your history when you have so much to celebrate and commemorate.
I am particularly honoured to be able to convey to you, in person, the warm greetings and heartfelt congratulations from President Zuma and the people of South Africa on the 1000 year anniversary of your capital, Thang Long Hanoi.
Indeed, you can look back with pride on the long and illustrious history of the city.
Excellency, this is indeed an exceptional year when Vietnam does not just have one birthday, but many birthdays to celebrate.
On 2 September this year, we shared with you the sense of pride on your statehood as you marked the occasion 65 years ago that Chairman Ho Chi Minh solemnly announced to the world the birth of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
We were very happy when, in July 2010, the UNESCO Heritage Committee declared the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long Hanoi a world cultural heritage site.
I also wish to mention the birthday of someone who has a very special place in South African history and especially in the history of the African National Congress. Allow me, Excellency to make mention of the birthday of your iconic General Giap who turned 100 years old in August 2010.
He is of course known all over the world as your Commander-in-Chief in both the Anti-French Resistance War from 1946 to 1954 and The American War from 1960 to 1975. But he also has a very special place in our hearts in South Africa for his role in our own freedom struggle.
It was in 1978 that the Government of Vietnam invited an ANC delegation, led by the late Oliver Tambo, to visit Vietnam.
The ANC delegation sought to learn from the Vietnamese experience in your struggle for independence from French colonial domination and US occupation. General Giap was among those Vietnamese leaders whom the ANC delegation consulted.
After the visit, the ANC compiled a report that famously became known as the “Green Book” which emphasised the importance of mobilising the masses to confront the apartheid government in a “People’s war”.
Today, I represent a free, democratic South Africa and have the honour to convey the appreciation of the South African nation to General Giap in his own country for his advice and guidance.
I am humbled to convey our best wishes and good health to the General as he celebrates the centenary birthday milestone.
Excellency, 2010 has also been a very special year for South Africa. As you know, we hosted the FIFA World Cup in June and July.
It was a time of great joy and pride for us and we are happy to know that our Vietnamese friends shared the moment with us.
We are aware that millions of viewers in Vietnam watched the football spectacle on the digital channel VTC. We trust that they got a glimpse of what South Africa has to offer and that we will be able to welcome many visitors from your country in time to come.
Excellency, as you know, I am here at the gracious invitation of Her Excellency, Vice President Nguyen Thi Doan and I have just had very fruitful discussion with her on various issues of importance between our two countries.
We have confirmed the importance of the Partnership Forum for Economic, Trade, Scientific, Technical and Cultural Cooperation as a vehicle to conduct our bilateral cooperation. To this end, we have agreed that the second Meeting of the Partnership Forum would be held in South Africa in the course of 2011 at a mutually convenient date. Hopefully by that time, our two sides would have agreed on the specific issues that they will discuss. Some would no doubt be the issues that would arise during my visit. These would include the implementation of the agreements that we have signed cooperation in the field of safety and public security, trade, investment, tourism etc.
In our discussion, we have noted that our countries both have fast growing economies and that there is vast potential to expand bilateral trade and investment in many areas. There is also a need to create awareness among the respective business communities regarding the value-added business opportunities prevalent in both countries.
In our discussions it was mentioned that South Africa wants to broaden our trade relations, especially in the field of defence cooperation. Denel Dynamics has submitted a bid for a contract to supply its surface-to-air missile system to the Vietnamese Navy. We believe that the South African system is superior to other systems and that a successful bid would open new areas of cooperation between our two countries in the field of defence and would further strengthen the people-to-people contact.
South Africa wishes to explore ways of cooperating with Vietnam to fight the illegal trade in rhino horn. We have already submitted a request that a technical delegation from South Africa be received in Vietnam later in October 2010 to discuss the issue. The objective of the visit is cooperation and the Vietnamese counterparts would be invited to pay a reciprocal visit to South Africa to share experiences.
Express our sincere appreciation for Vietnam’s support for South Africa’s bid to be elected as non-permanent Member of the UNSC for the period 2011/12. We have noted that Vietnam is bidding for this position for the period 2020 to 2021, for which elections are to be held in 2019 and that Vietnam has requested South Africa’s support. We are considering this and would revert as soon as possible.
It was suggested that our countries share a similar position on the Copenhagen Accord. While adhering to the Convention and its Kyoto Protocol, we maintain that there is a need to continue the negotiation process within the two-tracks set out by the Convention maintaining Convention principles such as common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities.
Source: The Presidency
