VietNamNet Bridge – Foreign media and public opinions have affirmed that General Vo Nguyen Giap, who passed away on October 4 at the age of 103, will live forever in the hearts of foreign friends and peoples.

Foreign media praise General Vo Nguyen Giap

The Uruguayan Ministry of External Relations on October 6 announced President Jose Mujica’s message of condolences extended to President Truong Tan Sang over the death of the “legendary General Vo Nguyen Giap”.

In his message, President Mujica affirmed that General Giap was the one who fostered Vietnamese independence, an exceptional strategist and inspirer of freedom worldwide who said the human factor is the key to victory.

The Uruguayan leader also confirmed that the sorrow he felt when learning of the death of the General will not lessen his belief in the General’s everlasting career, one of his biggest patrimonies to mankind.

His military ideologies will continue to be the magnet for the building of guerrilla forces in national struggles for liberation, peace and equality in Latin America, according to President Mujica.

Secretary General of the United Left Movement of the Dominican Republic Miguel Mejia has extended his condolences to leaders of the Communist Party of Vietnam over the death of General Giap.

In his message, Mejia said the legendary General will always be remembered as an outstanding military strategist who helped Vietnam gain independence in 1945 under President Ho Chi Minh’s guidance.

General Giap’s passing is a great loss to not only the Vietnamese people but also the world’s revolutionary movements, he said. However, he added that the General’s devotion and sacrifice will always inspire those struggling for freedom, happiness and peace for nations in the world.

The Government of Singapore is saddened to learn that General Vo Nguyen Giap passed away on October 4, 2013, said the Singaporean Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In a statement issued on October 6, the Foreign Ministry added that “General Giap played a pivotal role in Vietnam’s fight for independence”.

According to the Singaporean Foreign Ministry, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has written to Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung to express his condolences on the passing of General Giap.

Meanwhile, German newspapers highlighted General Giap’s great service to the Vietnamese revolutionary cause as well the sentiment of the people in the country towards him.

The TAZ daily newspaper has run an article describing Vo Nguyen Giap as one of the most brilliant military strategists of the 20 th century.

Under his leadership, Vietnam gained the historical victory over the French in the 55-day siege of the mountain-ringed outpost in Dien Bien Phu in 1954, ending more than 70 years of French rule in Indochina, which became a “lighthouse” for the national liberation movement worldwide.

Wen Zhuang, former member of a group of Chinese consultants and experts sent to assist Vietnam during the war against the French, told Beijing-based Vietnam News Agency correspondents that he met and worked with Mr Van (General Giap’s alias) many times over 56 years.

According to Zhuang, General Giap thoroughly grasped and realised Ho Chi Minh Thought with a mixture of Marxism-Leninism ideologies and the practical situation of the Vietnamese revolution.

He made great contributions to the people’s revolution with Vietnam’s typical characteristics and long-lasting significance in Vietnam, Zhuang said.

In the early 1990s, General Giap attended the Asia Games in Beijing as a guest, contributing greatly to the normalisation of the Vietnam-China friendship.

In an article in the Asahi newspaper on October 7, Japanese reporter Sazaki Manabu said that the passing of General Giap is a great loss to the Vietnamese Party, State and military.

Source: VNA/VOV