The peace envoy in the 1973 Paris Agreement negotiations

On January 27, 1973, the Paris Agreement ending the war and restoring peace in Vietnam was signed. Contributing to that resounding success of Vietnamese diplomacy, there was a woman who made the whole world admire...

Head of the negotiating delegation of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam Nguyen Thi Binh at the Paris Conference, January 27, 1973.

Female leader of the "Viet Cong" delegation

On January 27, 1973, the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam (Paris Agreement) was signed, marking an important turning point in our people's cause of fighting the US and saving the country. In addition to famous names in Vietnamese diplomacy such as Le Duc Tho and Xuan Thuy, Ms. Nguyen Thi Binh, the first female Foreign Minister of Vietnam, Head of the negotiating delegation of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam at the Paris Conference that year, is still mentioned with admiration.

In her memoir "Family, Friends and Country", Ms. Nguyen Thi Binh called diplomacy a special front in the resistance war against the US to save the country, a heavy task, "a very important page in my life of activities".

The event of Ms. Nguyen Thi Binh taking responsibility as Minister of Foreign Affairs , Head of the negotiating delegation of the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam at the Paris Conference caused a "storm" in the international media. The press at that time hunted for the image and biography of the female head of the "Viet Cong" delegation.

During the years of participating in negotiations at the Paris Conference, the image of "Madam Binh" as the media called her always made a strong impression on the Western press with her convincing, intelligent, sometimes firm, sometimes witty statements that made the world respect her and the people happy.

According to French journalist Madeleine Riffaud, all politicians commented: "The Viet Cong won a great victory through the reception of Madam Binh in Paris. Madam Binh was like a queen, welcomed like a head of state, with all the formalities, and warmly welcomed. Madam Binh shocked public opinion in Paris and the world. The flag of the Front was flying in Paris. Very wonderful! Very rare!".

The Paris Agreement went through 201 public sessions, 45 private high-level meetings, 500 press conferences, 1,000 interviews and thousands of anti-war and pro-Vietnam rallies. Every Thursday, Parisians witnessed "Madam Binh" with her elegant and luxurious demeanor, wearing a traditional Vietnamese ao dai, coming to the International Conference House to hold press conferences, answer interviews, and attend international conferences as Foreign Minister.

Head of the negotiating delegation of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam Nguyen Thi Binh answers questions from journalists at the 1973 Paris Conference.

According to Ms. Nguyen Thi Binh in her memoir, there were international press conferences with up to 400 journalists, or on live television, she had to give interviews (in French) to dozens of French and American reporters. Alone among the top journalists, under the bright lights, she calmly responded, strongly but gently, clearly expressing her goodwill to find a political solution to end the war.

French news agency AFP described: "Madam Binh wore a traditional Vietnamese ao dai made of green silk, looking very comfortable. Sometimes Madam Binh smiled, making her face even more radiant. She answered reporters clearly and concisely, giving people the feeling of standing before a lady full of courage and confidence."

Heart to heart diplomacy

During her many years of diplomatic work, she called it people's diplomacy. That is, people coming to people, hearts coming to hearts. She brought friends back to the nation. Her friends came from many skin colors, many classes, many professions, from ordinary people to heads of state of many different political regimes.

She traveled across continents to propagate, mobilize, and gain support from the international community for the Vietnamese people's just struggle, preparing information to launch sharp diplomatic attacks for negotiations... Her strong but reasonable arguments spread throughout countries, in international public opinion, through the press and media, arousing people's admiration for a small nation that dared to stand up against a big country to protect the right to live in independence and freedom.

The Paris Conference on ending the war in Vietnam was the longest diplomatic negotiation in the history of world negotiations, lasting 4 years, 8 months and 16 days. She made an impression by showing that she could combine "hardness and softness". The tough proposals and sharp diplomatic style of the only woman at the negotiating table attracted the attention of Western public opinion. At the negotiating table, everyone realized that Nguyen Thi Binh was a gentle but skillful and capable woman.

Copy

Ms. Nguyen Thi Binh at the 50th Anniversary of the Paris Agreement. (Photo: Tuan Anh)

In the fierce struggle between a small country and an empire, a woman leading the delegation both attracted attention and won the sympathy of world public opinion, clearly creating more favorable conditions for foreign affairs, as she later commented: "If you are a woman who knows how to behave skillfully, people will also have more sympathy and will listen to what you want to say about your position."

When talking about her personal love life, Ms. Nguyen Thi Binh affirmed: "I am a happy person" because "I have married the person I love". During all the Tet holidays, she was not with her husband and children, but had to celebrate Tet in a foreign country. Every time she missed her husband and children, she could only silently restrain her feelings...

That woman told herself: "A good revolutionary activity is to love the children." How could she not miss and love them because when she left, her eldest child was only 8 years old, and her youngest child was only 4 years old, the age when she really needed the care and love of a mother. Because of her duty and responsibility to the country, she had to send her children to relatives to raise.

"I was the one who signed a historic document on behalf of the people of the South. The result of the Agreement was the blood and bones of my compatriots and comrades. At that moment, I thought of my relatives who had passed away and could not witness these historic moments... I was moved to tears. That emotion will stay with me throughout my life" - Excerpt from the memoir "Family, Friends and Country" by Ms. Nguyen Thi Binh, former Vice President, the first female Foreign Minister of Vietnam, Head of the negotiating delegation of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam at the Paris Conference.

At that time, material conditions were very difficult. Ms. Nguyen Thi Binh shared in her memoir: "We lived very frugally. There were journalists who wanted to film the daily activities and accommodation of the "Viet Cong" delegation leader, but we firmly refused, citing the reason that Vietnamese customs do not allow the public disclosure of women's private activities. In fact, it was difficult for us to show them where Binh Thanh (Pham Thanh Van) and I lived, on the attic, with only two iron beds like in a hospital. There were curious journalists who asked me where I got my ao dai tailored, where I got my hair done, where I got my beauty treatments, and I tried to answer to get the matter over with...".

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/vi-su-gia-hoa-binh-trong-dam-phan-hiep-dinh-paris-1973-302545.html