Showing his grief at the Vietnamese leader’s passing, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim stated that it leaves a huge void.
The leader told the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) that Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's vision of maintaining strategic autonomy and promoting good governance in Vietnam resonated deeply with himself personally when he met the leader in his official visit to Vietnam in July 2023.
The Vietnamese Party leader's foresight on the relationship between Vietnam and Malaysia will remain long, he said, stressing that Trong's legacy will inspire future generations in Vietnam and across Southeast Asia.
Meanwhile, in his letter of condolences to President To Lam, Singaporean President Tharman Shanmugaratnam underscored that Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's dedication to the fight against corruption is a decisive factor in his leadership role. The leader had a steadfast belief in Vietnam's potential and worked tirelessly to ensure that the Party and Government of Vietnam are in the best position to realise it, wrote the Singaporean President.
Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong stated that throughout his decades-long career, including 13 years as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Trong's leadership greatly contributed to promoting Vietnam's rapid economic growth and improving people's living conditions.
In an interview granted to the VNA in New Delhi, former Deputy National Security Advisor of India Satyendra Pradhan described Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong as a witted and experienced political leader and a strategic theorist. He is also a benevolent leader who cared about the welfare of his people, said Pradhan, adding that the General Secretary's contributions to redefining the relationship between ideology, economic issues, foreign policy, people's welfare and the activities of the CPV are remarkable, including an anti-corruption campaign implemented with significant results.
Pradhan held that Trong made significant theoretical contributions to the Party by introducing much-needed reforms. Decision 244-QD/TW was a step to eliminate the monopoly of veteran members of the Politburo in nominating new members, he noted, stating that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made an important move to democratise the system without diluting the ideological foundation.
Another remarkable contribution of the Party leader is in the field of economy, Pradhan said. Trong once said that the market economy itself cannot destroy socialism. But to build socialism successfully, it is necessary to develop the market economy fully and properly, noted the former Indian official.
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Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong meets intellectuals, writers and artists in Hanoi on the occasion of the Lunar New Year of 2018 on February 7, 2018 (Photo: VNA)
Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong provided a model that other countries should follow, which is granting certain freedom to market development and this has led to the establishment of a socialist-oriented market economy, said Pradhan. He noted that since 2016, Vietnam's economy has improved significantly, with a stable annual growth rate at about 7%. Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, the rate still reached 3%. This is truly a miracle, he commented.
Pradhan asserted that the Trong’s leadership played a key role in determining approaches to international and regional issues, adding his assessments of the current international environment are realistic and his proposals are based on realism, demonstrated through the term of "bamboo diplomacy".
Although Vietnam has been taking a flexible and soft diplomacy to be suitable to all poles in the multipolar world, the policy is still closely tied to broader national interests towards peace and economic growth of the country and region. Vietnam's foreign policy aims to maintain independence to protect the interest of the nation and people, making the best use of available opportunities and diplomacy to promote the interests of Vietnamese people, Pradhan stated.
He commented that Vietnam’s “bamboo diplomacy” has brought about many benefits. Today it has good relations with all other countries, while gradually making moves towards peace in the region, he said, adding that Vietnam's role in ASEAN and at the UN Security Council has significantly enhanced the country's stature.
In the recent past, Vietnam welcomed three important leaders in the world - Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, and US President Joe Biden. This reflects the success of the bamboo diplomacy, which has also helped deepen Vietnam’s relationships with other countries, thereby improving people-to-people relations and human development in general, stated the former Indian official.
From Havana, Hero of the Republic of Cuba and President of the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP) Fernando González Llort affirmed that Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong was a leader of great theoretical and practical significance, who made huge contributions to the global revolutionary cause with a political ideology along the path to socialism.
The ICAP President underlined that staunch communist Nguyen Phu Trong worked tirelessly to strengthen the traditional relationship between the peoples of Cuba and Vietnam. He was always by Cuba's side during the most difficult times and spared no efforts to support the people of this brotherly island nation in all political and economic situations, he said.
The Cuban hero affirmed that in the hearts of the Cuban people, the image of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong is always bold with simplicity, humility, noble personality, and wise leadership ability, who steered the boat of the Communist Party of Vietnam through obstacles on its way to consolidating socialism and fighting for national development and modernisation.
He commented that Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong is an excellent disciple of President Ho Chi Minh, who always upheld President Ho Chi Minh’s ideological guidelines as well as his wishes for the future through training and educating new generations, showing the qualities of world-class politicians.
