April 16, 2012 — Vietnam's ambassador to the United States, Nguyen Quoc Cuong, will discuss the 11th congress of his country's Communist Party and its impact on foreign and domestic policy Friday in a speech at the University of Virginia.

The single-party nation holds a congress every five years. Its 11th congress, held in January 2011, mapped out the country's national policy for the next five years.

At. U.Va., Cuong will discuss how Vietnam views the world, how Vietnam defines its national interests in foreign affairs, and the implications of the Congress for U.S.-Vietnam relations.

He will speak at 3:30 p.m. in room 403 of Rouss-Robertson Hall as part of the University's Ambassadors' Speaker Forum, hosted by the Center for International Studies. The talk is co-sponsored by U.Va.'s East Asia Center.

Cuong is a career diplomat with 30 years' experience in foreign affairs. He was appointed ambassador to the United States in early 2011.

He was deputy foreign minister from 2008 to 2011. He has served in Canada (2002-05) and in China (1990-93). He received his B.A. from Vietnam's University of Foreign Affairs and his M.A. in international relations from Tufts University.

— by Jane Kelly