Deputy Foreign Minister and Chairman of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs Dang Minh Khoi (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) –Vietnam is giving priority to citizen protection despite an array of difficultiescaused by COVID-19, Deputy Foreign Minister and Chairman of the State Committee onOverseas Vietnamese Affairs Dang Minh Khoi affirmed in a recent interviewgranted to the Vietnam News Agency.
He said amid thecomplicated developments of the pandemic, the Vietnamese government has carriedout policies to bring home Vietnamese people who are studying, living or workingabroad, prioritising children, elderly people, those going abroad for treatment, and travellers trapped overseas.
The Ministry of ForeignAffairs is working closely with relevant ministries, especially the CivilAviation Administration of Vietnam under the Ministry of Transport, to helpVietnamese citizens return home.
Khoi said the biggestgoal is bringing Vietnamese citizens home safely, especially those in difficult situations, while implementingquarantine measures to prevent a second wave of the COVID-19 outbreaks. Thisrequires the efforts of domestic and foreign agencies, as well as publicsharing and cooperation.
The diplomat went on thatoverseas Vietnamese communities have actively contributed to the country’sfight against COVID-19 in response to the call of the Party, State, Government,and Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee.
Since the first COVID-19cases were reported in Vietnam in January, the Vietnamese communities inPoland, the Czech Republic and Russia have donated nearly 80,000 medical face masks,hundreds of bottles of antiseptic solution, protective gear and medical glovesto support Son Loi commune – a hotbed of COVID-19 in the northern province of Vinh Phuc, and a number of hospitals in Hanoi.
According to preliminarystatistics from the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, nearly 25collectives and individuals overseas from 14 localities have raised about 33billion VND (1.4 million USD) and donated medical supplies which have been sentto the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee, the Vietnam Red Cross Societyand hospitals to prevent the pandemic.
The foreign ministry andVietnamese representative agencies abroad have also actively implementedmeasures to support and protect citizens, particularly those stranded at airportsin Thailand, Japan, Singapore, the Republic of Korea and some Europeancountries./.
