Approaching the Russian-Ukrainian conflict with the former Head of the Vietnamese Delegation in UN

In order to help students update and analyze the international current situation from the perspective of those who carry out diplomatic work; introduce to students majoring in International Relations the practical diplomatic work of Vietnamese Ambassadors and Representatives to the United Nations; at the same time, creating opportunities for lecturers and students of the Faculty of International Relations to meet, exchange and learn from representatives of the Vietnamese diplomatic mission to the United Nations, the Faculty of International Relations organizes a scientific seminar " The Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the Test of Establishing a New World Order” at 9:00 am, Friday morning, March 18, 2022 at the 16th floor Hall – Campus 276 - University of Economics and Finance, HCMC. 

The program was attended by Dr. Nguyen Thanh Giang - Rector of the University, Dr. Nhan Cam Tri - Vice Rector, Dr. Ly Thien Trang - Vice Rector, Dr. Tran Thanh Huyen - Dean of Faculty of International Relations, Dr. Dao Minh Hong - Vice Dean of Faculty of International Relations, MSc. Truong Thi Ngoc Bich - Director of Center for Information - Communication, MSc. Nguyen Van Manh - Deputy Chief of the Office and teachers who are leaders of faculties at UEF.

On the side of representatives of units with training in International Relations in the Southern region, the Faculty of International Relations of UEF was honored to welcome:

The seminar was very honored to have the appearance of Assoc.Prof.Dr. Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy - Former Head of the Vietnamese Mission to the United Nations (UN), Chairman of the UN Security Council's Informal Working Group on International Courts, Former Director of the Academy of Foreign Affairs Ambassador to Vietnam, Former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam. With an engaging and approachable leadership style, a wealth of research and above all practical experience in Diplomacy at the world's largest organization - the United Nations, Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy has brought many perspectives to the world. A fresh, unique and authentic view for students about the event is attracting the attention of experts, scholars, graduate students and international media.

The seminar was divided into two main parts, including the sharing of general information about the war situation in Russia-Ukraine and the direct exchange between the Ambassador and the participants.

In the first part, the Ambassador's talk includes the following main contents: (1) the deep and direct causes of the conflict; (2) the nature of this war; (3) the Russian-Ukrainian conflict from the perspective of International Law; (4) prospects of the situation in Ukraine; (5) The new world situation/order after the conflict; (6) Impacts and Lessons for Vietnam.
 

The first content mentioned by the Ambassador was the root cause of this conflict. The conflict has its origins in the historical division of the territory; NATO's expansion of influence to the East makes Russia see this as a "closer" threat; national pride mixed with hatred of both sides; President Putin's will to restore the post-Soviet space and Ukraine's foreign policy. As for the immediate cause, the Kremlin government feels that its security is threatened by Ukraine's speeding up the process of joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

Next, Assoc.Prof.Dr. Dang Dinh Quy emphasized the perspective of International Law on this conflict. Firstly, international law deals with the concept of aggression - the act of sending one's army into another country's territory. Second, prohibiting the use of force and threatening to use force is an important content and a long-term solution in the process of conflict resolution in countries. Third, the right to national self-defense, national self-determination and the scope of their use, or the obligation to comply with humanitarian law under the United Nations Charter are points that experts need to focus on.
 

Fourthly, prospects for the situation in Ukraine: first, Ukraine announced not to join NATO, agreed to continue negotiations on other Russian conditions, Russia declared victory and withdrew its troops, continued to support military support for Donetsk and Luhansk, Ukraine declared victory (this scenario requires the participation of the US, EU in some form); second, Russia attacked hard, President Zelensky collapsed, the pro-Russian government accepted the conditions Russia offered, Ukraine's internal conflict widened; third, Russia is bogged down like before in Afghanistan, protracted guerrilla war. Along with that, the Ambassador also pointed out the advantages and disadvantages in the lives of the people of the two countries.

Looking at the world situation from the perspective of an expert with a lot of experience in diplomacy and international relations, Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy said that the world situation focused on the main points: the force correlation and policies of major countries; the general development trend of the world situation; the role of multilateral organizations and hot spots and outstanding issues of the world. And the Ambassador emphasized that the correlation of forces between countries is the thing that has the greatest influence on the movements and foreign policies of countries. The world is still in the "American order" - Pax American - an American-style peace. But the world situation will change: entering the post-Covid 19 period; post-Trump administration and post-war Ukraine. In which, the most important is the change of the power relationship (hard-soft; intelligent-practical; peace-strength-humanity) and policies of the great powers.

Facing the context of the conflict, Vietnam has also been facing direct (for the Vietnamese community in Ukraine) and indirect ( the regional and world situation; relations with the other  countries) impact. Thereby, the Ambassador affirmed that Vietnam has taken specific actions such as drastic and timely protection of citizens; minimize negative impacts; affirming stances and principles and providing objective and balanced news. Through that, the lessons of living with a big country, living peacefully with a smaller neighbor, keeping the three-no's principle in foreign affairs and promoting Ho Chi Minh's diplomacy are the things that Assoc.Prof.Dr. Dang Dinh Quy emphasized to ensure peaceful and friendly relations between Vietnam and other countries.

The second part of the talk show - the part that attracted a lot of attention and anticipation from the attendees, was the question-and-answer session from the lecturers and students. Exchange and interaction with the Ambassador with the participation of Dr. Dao Minh Hong, Vice Dean of the Faculty of International Relations at UEF. The questions focused on the following contents: conflict approach, thinking skills and handling information from the media, the perspective of war from theoretical frameworks, which clearly showed the interest of young people. are studying this major with the general situation of the world. In particular, with the support of the menti platform - attendees were able to actively ask questions and be projected on the hall's screen, thereby saving the Ambassador and attendees a lot of time.

From the analysis and assessment of speakers, UEF students in particular and International Relations students in Ho Chi Minh City in general have broadened their perspectives and learned about objectivity and fairness when looking at an event. That is also the message that the ambassador wants to convey before closing the discussion. Besides, this will also be a motivation for young people to continue to learn and research on this issue.