Viet Nam upholds solidarity, responsibility during 30-year ASEAN membership

On this day three decades ago, Viet Nam officially joined the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a strategic move not only for Viet Nam but also for ASEAN at that time as it put an end to division and confrontation while opening up a new phase of regional cohesion towards an "ASEAN family".

Joining ASEAN in 1995 was also Viet Nam's first step in its journey of international integration, creating the premise for signing the Bilateral Trade Agreement with the U.S. in 2001 and joining the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2006-2007, said Ambassador Pham Quang Vinh, who served as head of Viet Nam ASEAN SOM from 2007 to 2014.

During the past three decades, Viet Nam has always attached importance to ASEAN's solidarity and demonstrated responsibility in promoting the development of ASEAN, said Pham.

Viet Nam has also worked with other ASEAN Member States in building the ASEAN community, maintaining ASEAN centrality in addressing regional issues, and cultivating the bloc's external relations.

Viet Nam also played a key role in expanding the bloc from the original ASEAN-6 to ASEAN-10 by supporting the accession of the rest mainland Southeast Asian countries – Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia. Notably, the nation has been instrumental in narrowing development gaps among members through programmes such as the Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI).

Thanks to ASEAN membership, Viet Nam has showed remarkable growth. Last year, the country's GDP reached US$476.4 billion, 23 times that of 1995 and accounting for 12 percent of ASEAN's total GDP, compared to just 3.1 percent in 1995.

The size of the economy in 2024 ranked 32nd in the world and stood among the top 20 economies in terms of trade and foreign investment attraction. The people's living standards have significantly improved, with the poverty rate sharply declining to just 1.93% (according to multidimensional standards) compared to more than 60% in 1986.

Today, Viet Nam has established diplomatic ties with 194 countries which are members of the United Nations, and built cooperative relations, strategic partnerships, and comprehensive strategic partnerships with all major powers in the world./.