The Vietnamese Embassy in Berlin on Jan. 15 held a get-together for more than 400 Overseas Vietnamese in Germany at Viethaus to welcome the Lunar New Year of the Dragon.

Guests at the function included State Secretary of the Federal Foreign Office of Germany Emily Haber and many international friends.

Addressing the event, Vietnamese Ambassador to Germany Do Hoa Binh thanked the German government and people and international friends for their assistance and support to Vietnam during past years, particularly in the 25 years of reform implementation.

He said 2011 was a milestone for the Vietnam-Germany relationship, marked by the establishment of a strategic partnership for the future after the visit of German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Binh said 2011 saw an important benchmark of the development of Vietnamese community in Germany with the setting up of the Federal Union of Vietnamese People in Germany . Hhe hoped that the union will continue to be a bridge between Vietnamese and the German government as well as between OV in Germany and their homeland, contributing to strengthening the solidarity of OV in Germany and the relationship between the two countries.

President of the Federal Union of Vietnamese People in Germany , Prof. Nguyen Van Thoai expressed his gratitude to the German government and the Vietnamese Embassy for the assistance to OV in integrating with the resident country.

A music show performed by OV students and children was also included in the event. The get-together ended with a food festival featuring traditional Vietnamese dishes./.