Trong paid an official visit to Singapore in September 2012, during which he delivered a speech themed “For a Southeast Asia of peace, stability, cooperation and development” at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy which received high evaluation.
Associate Prof. Dr. Vu Minh Khuong, a Vietnamese lecturer at the school, said he was extremely impressed by humility and profoundness of the Party chief who delivered a speech affirming that Vietnam always treasures relations with Singapore and hopes to learn Singapore’s experience along the path to prosperity.
The lecturer said that he still remembers the impressive answers by the Party chief to participants’ questions following the speech. A painting that General Secretary Trong presented to the school is being hung in a solemn place, right next to the Principal's room, he said.
Khuong, who met the Party chief many times, said that he will never forget the eyes of General Secretary Trong when he proposed that Vietnam must set goals for 2030 – a year that marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of Vietnam - and 2045 - the centenary of independent Vietnam, to become a developed country on par with other countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
“I saw his eyes, those of a comrade, of a family member, and of a very responsible leader," stated Khuong, adding that they made the scholar confident in the great legacy that the Party chief left for the current generation of leaders and his vision to bring Vietnam to prosperity in the next decades.
Kishore Mahbubani, a former official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore who served as the Dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy then and currently an honorary scholar at the Asian Research Institute of the National University of Singapore (NUS), recalled the chance he listened to the Vietnamese Party chief’s speech and had his questioned answered by the leader, saying that he was greatly impressed by the confidence of General Secretary Trong when he answered questions at the event.
Mahbubani said he believes that this was the reason why General Secretary Trong was “one of the most successful leaders of Vietnam.”
Vietnam’s achievements in economic development in the past 20-30 years are extremely special to any standards. In some aspects, meeting the leader responsible for Vietnam's remarkable development was a wonderful experience for the school. “We are extremely honoured to welcome him,” he stated.
Showing his impression at Vietnam’s success under the leadership of General Secretary Trong, Mahbubani commented that the strongest imprint of the late leader was his careful thinking about how Vietnam can succeed in economic development.
In many ways, one of the wisest decisions that Vietnam made at the end of the Cold War was to switch to economic development and seek partners to cooperate with, and one of Vietnam’s choice was Singapore, he noted.
The former Singaporean Foreign Affairs official underlined that there are many reasons why General Secretary Trong was one of Vietnam's most successful leaders.
He emphasised that not every country with resources is as developed as Vietnam, clarifying that Vietnam’s success under Trong’s leadership has shown that the country has talented leaders who made wise decisions to promote economic development and bring about more prosperous life.
Mahbubani also highly evaluated Vietnam’s external policy under General Secretary Trong’s leadership and Vietnam’s ability to navigate the increasingly complex international and regional geopolitical environment.
The scholar, who has researched geopolitics for more than 50 years, held that there are only a few countries in the world that have a wise geopolitical strategy, and Vietnam is one of them.
He said he believes that although General Secretary Trong has passed away, other leaders of Vietnam will ensure that legacies and efforts of the Party leader continue, heading to a good governance, shaping correct economic policies and eliminating corruption.
