Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam has demonstrated its high responsibility as a member of theInter-Parliamentary Union Assembly Executive Committee when it delivered a reporton the operation of the committee at the 138th IPU Assembly(IPU-138) in Switzerland’s Geneva, a Vietnamese official has said.

Chairman ofthe National Assembly’s Committee for External Affairs Nguyen Van Giau made theaffirmation in an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency after heaccompanied National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan to the event.

At the invitation of IPU President Gabriela Cuevas Barron, NA Chairwoman Nganled a Vietnamese high-ranking delegation to attend the IPU-138 from March 25-26.

The event, which was chaired by IPU President Gabriela Cuevas Barron,took place in the context of complicated developments worldwide, especially theemergence of terrorism; refugee matter; populist movement and ethnic strife, hesaid.

During theIPU-138, Vietnam showed its high responsibility through reports on activitiesof the IPU Executive Committee delivered at the event, which reflected fullyand clearly Vietnam’s viewpoints, and participated in all conferences in theframework of the event, he stressed.

In her speech at the IPU-138’s opening session, NA Chairman Ngan maderecommendations and specific initiatives to address challenges of migration, andaffirmed the need to maintain peace for sustainable development.

She also proposed the IPU member countries to effectively implement the the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and calling on IPU member parliamentsto review legal policies concerning education, health care, job, equaltreatment for refugees.

The Vietnamese leader also suggested the building of policies to createresources for supporting countries that affected by the migration problem, withthe assistance from big nations.

TheVietnamese delegation had meetings and worked with the IPU President and SecretaryGeneral, during which the IPU leaders highly valued Vietnam’s efforts toorganise the 26th Annual Meeting of theAsia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum(APPF-26) in January.

They stated that the Hanoi Declarationwas a success of the APPF-26 as it has setforth a new vision and developmentorientation for Asia-Pacific parliamentarypartnership to 2030.

The IPU President and Secretary General said Vietnam has been an active member ofthe IPU and closely cooperated with the union in recent years since the countrysuccessfully hosted the IPU-132, affirming that Vietnam is seen a good example forthe IPU’s other member nations.

On the sidelines of the IPU-138, NA Chairwoman Ngan met with Speaker of Indonesia's House ofRepresentatives Bambang Soesatyo, Speaker of the Sri Lankan ParliamentKaru Jayasuriya, and Bulgarian Speaker of Bulgarian National Assembly TsvetaKarayancheva.

NA Chairwoman Nguyen ThiKim Ngan’s official visit to the Netherlands from March 26-28 was a success,Giau said. The visit has further deepened the two countries’ relations byexpanding their strategic partnership on two more areas and strengthening theirfriendship and multifaceted cooperation.

Ngan held talks withSpeaker of the House of Representatives Khadija Arib and President of SenateAnkie Broekers Knol and paid a courtesy visit to Queen Máxima Zorreguieta Cerruti, who also serves as the United NationsSecretary-General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development.

During these meetings, theDutch side showed concerns over the East Sea issues. They stressed theimportance of freedom of overflight and navigation, saying the settlement ofall territorial disputes in the East Sea must be abided by the law to maintaina peaceful environment.

They urged Vietnam to furtherfoster cooperation in multiple fields, including education and tourism.

The NA chairwoman also hadmeetings with the Netherlands-Vietnam Chamber of Commerce (NVCC) and HermenBorst, Dutch Director of the Staff of the Delta Programme Commissioner, hesaid. Giau noted that the meeting with Borst was very interesting whichprovided something for Vietnam to learn from. The Delta Programme is designedto protect the Netherlands against flooding and to secure freshwater suppliesfor the country.

The Dutch Governmentprovided about 2 billion USD in funding for the Delta Programme Commission andit works really well, he added.

Giau said that he believesVietnam and the Netherlands will continue bringing the bilateral relations to anew height. The visit made by NA Chairwoman Ngan marked a new milestone in theexpansion of the ties between the two legislative bodies, dedicating thestronger diplomatic ties between the two countries and the regional and globalpeace and development.-VNA