National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man attends the opening ceremony of IPU-150. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

The opening ceremony was attended by President of the Senate Tanzila Norbaeva and Speaker of the House of Representatives Nuriddinjon Ismailov of the Uzbekistan Parliament, IPU President Tulia Ackson, IPU Secretary General Martin Chungong, along with 49 Presidents, 46 Vice Presidents and more than 700 parliamentarians from nearly 130 member parliaments. National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man led a high-ranking delegation of the Vietnamese National Assembly to attend the 150th IPU Assembly.

In their welcoming remarks, the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives of Uzbekistan highlighted the significance of the first IPU General Assembly held in a Central Asian country, as well as the highly topical theme of the session, in the context of the world facing many challenges in ensuring social development, especially due to armed conflicts, great power competition, political instability, declining commitments and resources in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals, ensuring social justice, and assisting vulnerable groups.

The heads of the two chambers of the Host Country's National Assembly especially thanked and appreciated the participation of a large number of IPU member parliaments, especially at the level of the National Assembly President, thereby demonstrating the strong vitality of the IPU, the unanimous support for multilateralism and the joint efforts of parliaments of all countries for noble goals, for the people of each country.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man with delegates attending the opening ceremony of IPU-150. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

Speaking at the opening ceremony, IPU President Tulia Ackson affirmed the historical significance of the 150th IPU General Assembly, the important role of the IPU and member parliaments in promoting persistent and continuous efforts through many sessions to promote democracy, international cooperation, build a more peaceful world, and implement the Sustainable Development Goals.

Ms. Tulia Ackson suggested that the IPU General Assembly focus on discussing the world and regional situation, sharing experiences, exchanging and seeking solutions to current challenges such as: hunger eradication, poverty reduction, eliminating injustice and social inequality, narrowing the gap between developed and developing countries, creating sustainable jobs, effectively handling non-traditional security challenges, especially climate change, energy transition, green finance for green economy.

The IPU President said that the IPU and its member parliaments need to take the lead in creating a legal framework, acting as a bridge to resolve disagreements, and taking practical actions to promote social development on the three pillars of peace, justice and a fairer and better future for all; thereby making practical contributions to the success of the United Nations Summit on Social Development, held in November 2025 in Doha, Qatar.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man and delegates attend the opening ceremony of IPU-150. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

IPU Secretary General Martin Chungong highlighted the role of parliamentary diplomacy in promoting peace, cooperation and development in regions and the world, as well as ensuring better lives for people, through dialogue, cooperation, trust building and experience sharing.

Mr. Martin Chungong said that in 2024, the IPU has made efforts to promote inter-parliamentary cooperation at the global and regional levels, including conflict zones, and announced major and important events in 2025 such as the Second Parliamentary Conference on Interfaith Dialogue in June 2025, the World Conference of Speakers of Parliament and the World Conference of Women Speakers of Parliament in July 2025.

The IPU Secretary-General affirmed his determination to promote gender equality in the year marking the 30th anniversary of the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, especially by launching the Gender Equality Campaign in Parliaments, enhancing women's political participation, raising awareness, and combating discrimination and gender-based violence.

IPU-150 opening ceremony. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

Regarding the results of IPU-150, Mr. Martin Chungong called on the session to discuss and adopt two important resolutions on the role of parliament in promoting a two-state solution in Palestine and on Mitigating the impact of conflict on sustainable development.

The 150th IPU Assembly will convene from April 6-9, 2025. According to the program, National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man will deliver an important speech at the General Debate of the 150th IPU Assembly.

Phan Phuong (Vietnam News Agency)

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/thoi-su/khai-mac-dai-hoi-dong-lan-thu-150-cua-lien-minh-nghi-vien-the-gioi-20250406055915941.htm