Vietnamese Embassy holds memorial service for former Prime Minister Phan Van Khai in the US (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnamese embassies inAustralia, New Zealand, Canada and Mexico on March 20 and 21 held solemnmemorial services for former Prime Minister Phan Van Khai who passed away lastweekend, aged 85.
Foreign ambassadors and diplomats, representatives ofinternational organisations and Vietnamese expats in Australia came to theEmbassy of Vietnam in Canberra to pay tribute to the former PM and write downtheir memories of him on the funeral book.
The Lao Ambassador to Australia showed deep regrets overthe death of the former PM, saying he was a beloved leader of Vietnamese peopleand a good friend of Laos. A diplomat from US Embassy recalled the former PM’sgreat contribution to the Vietnam-US relations as he was the first VietnamesePM to pay an official visit to the US, hailing him as one who acceleratedeconomic reform, bring prosperity to Vietnam.
Similar events took place in Vietnamese consulate generalin Sydney and Perth.
In New Zealand, Vietnamese Ambassador Nguyen Viet Dungconveyed his greatest condolences over the loss of former PM Phan Van Khai’sfamily at a memorial service held in Wellington.
During his ebullient time as a revolutionary since 1947,the former PM had held a number of leadership posts from grass-roots to centrallevels, both in wars and in peace, greatly dedicating to the nationalliberation, building and safeguarding. In office for nine years (from1997-2000), Khai was praised as a leader that strongly pushed for Vietnam’snational reforms and international integration, the Ambassador wrote in thefuneral book.
In Ottawa, Canada, Vietnamese Ambassador Nguyen Duc Hoajoined staff at the Embassy of Vietnam and Vietnam’s representative offices inone-minute silence in memory of former PM Khai on March 20.
Hoa wrote down on the funeral book, recalling Khai’simportant achievements to promote the country’s “Doi moi” (Renewal) process andthe development of the Vietnam-Canada relations. The former PM has gone but theVietnam House at 85 Glebe Avenue forever preserves gifts he presented on an officialvisit to Canada in 2005.
The same day, ambassadors and diplomats from Greece,Iraq, and Thailand as well as representatives of the Communist Party (Marxist-Leninist)in Canada sent their condolences to the Vietnamese Embassy over Khai’s deathwhile many diplomats from Qatar, Guyana, Slovenia, Canada, ASEAN and Vietnameseexpats paid homage to him at the embassy.
The Embassy of Vietnam to Mexico also hosted an event topay tribute to the former PM on March 20 and 21 with the attendance ofambassadors from Pakistan, Cuba, Algeria, Thailand, Peru and Malaysian chargéd’affaires.-VNA
VNA
