A diverse array of countries have hosted celebrations marking the 68th anniversary of Vietnam’s National Day on September 2.Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh joined Laos Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Thongloun Sisoulith and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at a commemoration of the August Revolution’s 68th anniversary in Beijing on August 30.Foreign Minister Minh praised the generations of Vietnamese responsible for building and developing the nation over the past 68 years, transforming it into a proactive and responsible member of the international community.He concurred with Wang Yi on the common interests in peace and stability shared between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Minh professed faith in China’s and ASEAN’s ability to achieve this on the basis of mutual respect, equality, and general benefit.Developing Vietnamese-Chinese cooperation can only improve the ASEAN-China strategic partnership, Minh said.His Chinese counterpart Wang Yi agreed the China-Vietnam relationship will see far-reaching results from Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang’s state visit last June and Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung’s forthcoming appearance at the 10th China-ASEAN Trade Expo in Nanning. Dung is scheduled to meet with the Chinese Premier to prepare for an official friendship visit by Chinese senior leaders to Vietnam in the near future.Foreign Minister Minh hosted an earlier reception for his Lao and Chinese colleagues.Celebratory banquets took place in Laos , Russia , India , and Argentina on the same day.The ceremony at the Vietnamese Embassy in Vientiane was attended by Lao Deputy Prime Minister Somsavad Lengsavath and senior Lao Party and Government officials.Vietnamese Ambassador to Laos Nguyen Manh Hung said the special Vietnam-Laos friendship and solidarity fostered by the two peoples has sustained their fruitful cooperation.The Vietnamese Embassy in Russia hosted a celebration attended by Russian State Secretary and Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin, Russian State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Alexei Pushkov, and Russia-Vietnam Friendship Association President Vladimir Buianov.Similar events took place at Vietnamese embassies in Malaysia and Cuba on August 27–28.The Vietnamese Ambassador to Malaysia reviewed the 40 year history of the bilateral relationship, praising recent successes in investment and trade cooperation.Malaysian Deputy Foreign Minister Hamzah Zainuddin congratulated Vietnam on its National Day and expressed his desire to strengthen ties in the future.The Vietnamese Ambassador to Cuba recounted President Ho Chi Minh’s delivery of the Declaration of Independence in Hanoi’s historic Ba Dinh Square on September 2, 1945.He described the traditions of solidarity, fraternity, and comprehensive cooperation upheld by Vietnamese and Cuban comrades.Party Leader Nguyen Phu Trong’s and Cuban President Raul Castro’s 2012 visit exchanges testified to the health of their relationship, he said.VOV