Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son continued to attend and be the keynote speaker at the discussion session on “Net Zero Emissions, Sustainable Development, Biodiversity” chaired by the UK Minister for Energy Security and Carbon Neutrality.

In his speech, Minister Bui Thanh Son emphasized that climate challenges have been, are and will be one of the greatest challenges of our time, threatening food security, water resources, and negatively affecting the livelihoods of people around the world. On the journey to find answers to these challenges, we have agreed on the urgency and determination to transform the global economy from “brown” to “green”.

From the Paris Conference to COP 26, COP 27; from the Action Agenda for Climate (IPAC), the Asian Zero Net Emission Community (AZEC) to the International Carbon Mitigation Forum (IFCMA); many initiatives, approaches and commitments for the climate have been put forward.

The next step on the climate agenda is to turn awareness into action on a global scale. This is a challenging process for OECD countries, but it is even more difficult for less developed non-OECD countries.

The Minister shared that, from the perspective of Vietnam, a developing country, an economy in transition, to be successful, this process needs to ensure the following criteria: Balance, Fairness, Synchronization and Breakthrough.

The green transition needs to ensure balance and equity. It is a strategic balance between clean energy transition and energy security, taking into account different conditions and levels between countries to build diverse and highly practical energy transition roadmaps.

That is fairness in access to green technology and green finance for developing and underdeveloped countries; fairness in ensuring space and development opportunities among groups of countries and communities in society so that no one or country is left behind.

The green transition needs to be implemented globally and synchronously. The climate challenge has no national borders. A hole in the ozone layer in one corner of the world will quickly impact climate change all over the earth.

Therefore, it requires policy coordination and determination from all countries in the world. Vietnam highly appreciates the OECD's IFCMA Forum; the unification of some common orientations and policies at the global level such as the IFCMA mission plays an important role.

The green transition is a revolution, and to be successful, it requires breakthrough thinking and action, especially bold application of new technologies that are greener, more efficient and smarter. To minimize the risks of trade-offs when making breakthroughs, Vietnam hopes that OECD countries, which are leaders in technology, will help pioneer the development and transfer of new technologies that are efficient, safe and suitable for developing countries.

The Minister also said that Vietnam is one of the countries most severely affected by climate change. Transitioning to a green, circular, low-emission economy has always been Vietnam's consistent and continuous development policy.

Despite being a developing country in transition, Vietnam has made ambitious commitments and joined hands with the international community in responding to climate change. This determination is clearly demonstrated through Vietnam's strong commitment at COP 26, the establishment of the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) with G7 countries and most recently the approval of the National Power Development Plan for the 2021-2030 period.

This climate action roadmap can only be successful with the support of international friends, especially the OECD through preferential capital support, technology transfer, policy institution building, governance and training of high-quality human resources. Vietnam hopes that the OECD will support the management and sustainable use of water resources, especially in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam.