Opening of the Exhibition of the Geneva Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities in Vietnam

Opening the exhibition, Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son stated that 70 years ago, the Geneva Agreement on the cessation of hostilities in Vietnam was signed. With this victory, for the first time in history, Vietnam's fundamental national rights of independence, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity were officially affirmed in an international treaty and recognized and respected by the countries and parties attending the Conference.

This victory also opened up a new strategic situation for Vietnam to move towards fully realizing the goals of peace, national independence, national unification and building socialism.

The Geneva Agreement, together with the Dien Bien Phu victory that "resounded throughout the five continents and shook the world," created great inspiration and encouragement for the national liberation movement across the five continents, for independence, freedom, peace, democracy, progress and social justice; opening the way for the collapse of old colonialism around the world, Minister Bui Thanh Son emphasized.

According to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the 70th anniversary of the signing of the Geneva Agreement is an opportunity for us to understand more deeply the valuable historical lessons that still hold true and to work together to build a better present and future. Having gone through many struggles against foreign invaders, Vietnam has always treasured the value of peace, always upholding and respecting the fundamental principles of the United Nations Charter and international law, and contributing its utmost to peace, national independence, democracy, development cooperation and social progress in the world.

Promoting the nation's heroic historical tradition, continuing to deeply grasp and creatively apply Ho Chi Minh's ideology, style, and diplomatic art and the valuable lessons of the Geneva Agreement, Minister Bui Thanh Son affirmed that the Foreign Affairs sector promotes the pioneering role of foreign affairs in maintaining a peaceful, stable, and favorable environment for the country's rapid and sustainable development, for the goal of a rich people, a strong country, democracy, fairness, and civilization.

With about 120 photos, documents and artifacts, including documents and artifacts about the Geneva Agreement introduced to the public for the first time, the exhibition "Geneva Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities in Vietnam - A Historical Milestone of Vietnamese Revolutionary Diplomacy", recreates the process of negotiation, signing and implementation of the Geneva Agreement, thereby helping the masses and international friends understand more fully and deeply the stature and significance of the Geneva Agreement, and have a more vivid and intuitive perception of the indomitable will of our people in the struggle for national liberation, national reunification, building and defending the Fatherland as well as the unique and distinctive character and character of Vietnamese diplomacy in the Ho Chi Minh era.

The exhibition is open from July 15 to September 5.

On this occasion, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in coordination with the News Publishing House of the Vietnam News Agency, introduces to domestic and international readers the photo book "The 1954 Geneva Agreement - A historical milestone in the Vietnamese Revolution" with the desire to review with readers the heroic history of the nation, further deepening the stature and significance of this particularly important victory.

The book is an effort to collect, assemble and compile from thousands of photos to select more than 250 photos from photo sources of Vietnam News Agency, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Central Party Office Archives, National Museum of History, National Archives Center III, of the family of comrade Ta Quang Buu - a participant in negotiations at the Conference, and especially there are newly published photos such as those of the Swiss Embassy about the Conference...

The book will help readers get closer to historical events and information marking a glorious chapter in the history of the Vietnamese revolution in general and of Vietnamese revolutionary diplomacy in particular.