Australian Prime Minister’s Special Envoy on

Asia Pacific Community visits Vietnam

The Australian Prime Minister’s Special Envoy, Mr Richard Woolcott AC, visited Hanoi from 14 to 16 January to consult Vietnam on Prime Minister’s Rudd’s proposal for an Asia Pacific community.

Mr Woolcott, who was also the Australian envoy involved in negotiating the formation of APEC in 1989, said that he was delighted to have had the opportunity to visit Vietnam for the first time since he accompanied then Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam on his official visit to Vietnam in 1974, shortly after the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1973.

“Mr. Rudd’s forward looking proposal for a greater degree of cooperation in the Asia Pacific community was directed towards strengthening cooperation and peace in the region. Countries like Australia, Vietnam and other members of ASEAN, need to adjust to the changes underway in the Asia Pacific region in order to maintain their influence as the Twenty-first Century unfolds”, said Mr Woolcott.

During the visit, Mr Woolcott met Prime Minister H.E. Mr Nguyen Tan Dung, Standing Member of the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam H.E. Mr. Truong Tan San, Minister of Industry and Trade H.E. Mr. Vu Huy Hoang, Vice Chairman of the National Assembly’s Committee for Foreign Affairs, H.E Mr. Ngo Duc Manh, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs H.E. Mr Doan Xuan Hung, and President of the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam, Ambassador Duong Van Quang.