'India deserves membership on all S.E. Asian fora'

By Amit Baruah

HANOI, JAN. 8. The Vietnamese Prime Minister, Mr. Phan Van Khai, said tonight that India ``deserves membership on all important economic and political forums in the (Southeast Asian) region'' while reiterating its support for New Delhi's entry into the United Nations Security Council.

Mr. Khai, speaking at a banquet he hosted in honour of the visiting Prime Minister, Mr. A. B. Vajpayee, made it clear that the traditionally friendly relationship between the two countries meant that Hanoi had no hesitation in supporting India's entry into any and every regional forum.

``The Vietnamese people are proud of our great friend, India. With her great stature, India has a very important role to play in the region and the world... India today has become a scientific and technical power, especially in software technology. Building on its growing strength in all fields and high sense of responsibility in international affairs, India will make a greater contribution to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the world.''

Referring to the ancient contacts between the two nations, Mr. Khai mentioned the friendship between Ho Chi Minh and Jawaharlal Nehru, first foreign leader to visit Vietnam after the French defeat in Dien Bien Phu in 1954.

``Since then, along the difficult path of our struggle for national liberation and reunification and the current phase of national building and defence, we always have India as our close and faithful friend... that friendship will be forever strengthened and flourish in the new millennium,'' Mr. Khai said.

The two countries enjoyed excellent political ties and well- established mechanisms for cooperation ``all of which constitute the foundation for deeper and more efficient bilateral cooperation''.

In his speech, Mr. Vajpayee said he vividly recalled the ``expression of spontaneous joy'' that erupted in Indian cities when Vietnamese troops entered Saigon 25 years ago. ``All this is now history. A stirring history, but still it is the past. We are full of admiration for Vietnam's rapid strides towards a bright future.''

``Today, the international situation has changed. A globalising world and the information technology revolution have transformed the world economic scene. Building on the history of traditional friendship... India and Vietnam should today renew and revitalise our bilateral relations in consonance with current realities,'' Mr. Vajpayee said at the banquet.

``What our two countries need to do is to identify and exploit more fully the synergies that our new conditions have created... we have much to offer each other, more economically and with more appropriate technologies. We should dispel the awareness gap that seems to exist in the business community and even among the Government officials in each country about the capabilities and successes of the other,'' the Prime Minister said.

Mr. Vajpayee made it clear that India supported the consistent support Vietnam had extended on issues of mutual concern at international fora. ``We share a common determination to strengthen the Non-Aligned Movement.

We also share a similarity of views on the need to reform and strengthen the UN and its Security Council.'' ``History and geography have willed us to become strategic partners in the new century to promote peace, stability, security and sustainable cooperation among countries in Asia,'' he added.

At the joint press conference, Mr. Vajpayee announced that apart from the $5 million credit offered in December 1999 to set up two centres for software and human resource development in Vietnam, India had added a Rs. 100-million grant for a software and training centre.

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