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German-Vietnamese friendship association marks 50 years of nurturing people-to-people ties
The Germany-Vietnam Friendship Association celebrated its 50th founding anniversary in Düsseldorf on October 10, marking five decades of efforts to promote solidarity, friendship, mutual understanding and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.
Addressing the event, Vietnamese Consul General in Frankfurt am Main Luu Xuan Dong praised the association’s contributions over the past five decades. Since its establishment in 1976, the association has sought to bring together organisations and individuals who support Vietnam, strengthen solidarity and serve as a bridge between the two peoples.
He highlighted its cultural exchange activities to introduce Vietnam and its people to German audiences. The association has also carried out humanitarian programmes supporting Agent Orange victims, children with hearing impairments and disadvantaged students in remote areas through scholarships.
These meaningful activities have helped lay a solid foundation for the Vietnam-Germany Strategic Partnership, he said.
Looking ahead, Dong noted that Vietnam is entering a new development era and expressed hope that the association would continue to serve as a bridge, not only by maintaining traditional cultural exchanges but also by expanding cooperation into emerging fields such as science, technology, innovation and green transition, while connecting young intellectuals from the two countries.
At the ceremony, head of a delegation from the Vietnam-Germany Friendship Association Nguyen Bich Ngoc handed over a congratulatory letter from former Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Chi Dung, President of the Vietnam-Germany Friendship Association, to President of the German-Vietnam Friendship Association Professor Dr. Günter Giesenfeld, the association’s leadership and members.
The letter recalled the solidarity shown by predecessor organisations in the 1960s and 1970s, when anti-war movements and campaigns supporting peace and Vietnam’s just struggle were active in Germany. Since its official establishment in 1976, the association has made important contributions to friendship and mutual understanding between the two peoples.
Dung praised Giesenfeld and generations of members for their longstanding dedication, expressing hope that the two friendship associations would strengthen coordination in people-to-people exchanges, culture, science and activities targeting young people.
In his speech, Giesenfeld reviewed the association’s history and development over the decades, stressing the need for friendship organisations to renew their methods of operation, shifting from solidarity based on support to equal partnerships that involve exchanging experience, sharing responsibility and seeking solutions to common global challenges.
He praised Vietnam’s development achievements, particularly its efforts to combine economic growth with social progress, equity and people’s interests. He stressed that solidarity today should be based on respect, equality, sharing and partnership, alongside frank and constructive exchanges to strengthen mutual trust.
The ceremony also featured archival photographs and documentary footage compiled by Giesenfeld, tracing key milestones in Germany’s solidarity movement with Vietnam. The programme also featured readings of Vietnamese poems translated into German by Giesenfeld, helping introduce Vietnamese literary and cultural values to local audiences./.
