In 2010, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Federal Republic of Germany celebrated the 35th anniversary of diplomatic relations (1975-2010). The book you are holding in your hands is a work to celebrate this important event. It is the result of continuous cooperation between two organizations: the Goethe Institute Hanoi and the Faculty of International Studies, University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi. This idea certainly would not have become a reality without the contributions of scientists from both the Federal Republic of Germany and Vietnam.
The book consists of 9 articles, including 4 articles by German scholars and 5 articles by Vietnamese scholars, with the main theme of looking back at the Vietnam-Germany relationship to look towards the future. There is no doubt that the Germany-Vietnam relationship is a special relationship. The specialness is shown in the fact that both countries were divided into opposing fronts and became the hottest spots during the Cold War. Both later reunited, albeit through different paths. Since the end of the Cold War, both countries have participated in the regional integration process and played an important role in that process. However, those similarities do not make the relationship between the two countries as easy and smooth as people think. In fact, the relationship is quite complicated, intertwined, and sometimes sensitive in the context of many fluctuations in the region and the world. In this work, many questions have been raised by scholars to discuss in order to provide a more comprehensive and in-depth view of the Vietnam-Germany relationship. How did the war in Vietnam transform from a national struggle to a class struggle (Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pham Hong Tung, Hanoi National University); How did the Federal Republic of Germany relate to the Saigon Government (Dr. Gerhard Will, German Institute for International Politics and Security Studies); was the pro-Vietnam movement in the Federal Republic of Germany during the war entirely for Vietnam (Dr. Joerg Wischerman, Institute for Asian Studies, Hamburg, Germany); how should we understand the international proletarian nature of the cooperation between the Federal Republic of Germany and Vietnam (Dr. Bernd Schaefer, Woodrow Wilson International Center, Washington DC); who are the Vietnamese in Germany (Dr. Martin Grossheim, Institute for Asian-African Studies, Humboldt University, Berlin); Why does Vietnam passively and unsystematically absorb German philosophy (Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Quang Hung, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Social Sciences and Humanities); How do cultural factors and intercultural communication affect Vietnam - Germany relations (Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pham Quang Minh, Faculty of International Studies, University of Social Sciences and Humanities); What can Vietnam learn from Germany's social market economy model (Dr. Le Dang Doanh, Central Institute for Economic Management Research and Dr. Luong Van Ke, Faculty of International Studies, University of Social Sciences and Humanities)? In fact, this is only part of what the authors want to send to readers. On the occasion of the book's publication, I would like to express my gratitude to all the silent efforts and deep affection that everyone has devoted to this project. Thank you to the Goethe Institute Hanoi for sponsoring the Conference as well as organizing the publication. We look forward to receiving your comments. Thank you very much.
