Hanoi hosts SE Asia Red Cross Red Crescent Leadership Meeting

During the two-day event, delegates will assess the implementation of conclusions made in the previous meeting which took place in last September in Indonesia’s Jakarta, as well as the One Billion Coalition for Resilience programme, both globally and regionally. 

Apart from orientations for operation in the time ahead, they will also discuss how to build a safe community and the agenda of the 21st General Assembly of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the Red Cross and Red Crescent Forum to be held in Turkey in November 2017.

In his remarks, Vietnamese Deputy Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son said the meeting offers an opportunity for Red Cross Societies of the participating countries to exchange experience and work together to materialise targets of the ASEAN Community. 

The Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies have constructively supported governments to implement humanitarian activities and international cooperation, he said. 

The Vietnamese Government has considered opening a representative office of the International Red Cross in Vietnam, Son noted. 

President of the Vietnam Red Cross Society (VRCS) Nguyen Thi Xuan Thu said thanks to the attention of the Party, State and Government, and the support of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, national Red Cross Societies and international organisations, the VRCS has made remarkable achievements, helping to raise its position and role in the region and the globe. 

The meeting contributes to boosting cooperation and friendship between the VRCS and other national Red Cross Societies in the region, while reflecting the VRCS’s international responsibility and commitment to regional and international humanitarian movements, she said. 

Within the framework of the event, the VRCS and their Lao and Cambodian counterparts will sign a cooperation agreement for 2017-2022.