Senior Ambassador Vu Quang Minh

by Editor BGF | Nov 17, 2025 | Executive Board

Born in Ha Noi, Viet Nam, after joining the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam (MOFA) in 1990, Vice Minister, Ambassador Vu Quang Minh had worked in several Departments of the Ministry, including Departments for the Soviet Union (now part of the Department for Europe), UNESCO National Secretariat (now Department for External Relations for Local Governments and Cultural Diplomacy), ASEAN National Secretariat (ASEAN Affairs Department), Office of the Foreign Minister, Multilateral Economic Cooperation Department, and Economic Affairs Department (now Department for Economic Diplomacy). Before MOFA, Ambassador Vu Quang Minh worked as a trade desk officer at the Central Union of Vietnamese Cooperative Enterprises from 1998-1990.

From 1997-2002 he had been on assignment at the Office of the Government of Viet Nam as Personal Secretary to Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Nguyen Manh Cam, who was responsible for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry for Investment and Planning (then, now part of the Ministry of Finance), and the National Committee for International Economic Integration.

From 2002 to 2006 Mr. Vu Quang Minh had been posted as Counsellor, Head of the Economic Section at Viet Nam’s Embassy to the United States of America. In December 2010 Mr. Vu Quang Minh was appointed Viet Nam’s Ambassador to the UK and Ireland. In October 2011 he was promoted to Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Upon completion of his term in London, since October 2014 Ambassador Vu Quang Minh had returned to work at MOFA as Assistant Minister, Director-General of the Economic Affairs Department, until May 2017 when he was appointed the new Vietnamese Ambassador to the Kingdom of Cambodia. On 17/11/2017 Ambassador Vu Quang Minh was promoted to Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs.

In September 2021, Ambassador Vu Quang Minh finished his tenure and came back to his position as Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs at Hanoi MOFA Headquarters.

In March 2022, Vice Minister Vu Quang Minh assumed the post of Ambassador to Germany and concluded his tenure in July 2025.

In August 2025 Senior Ambassador Vu Quang Minh joined Vriens & Partners as Senior Advisor and also started working as independent policy analysist and consultant.

On 19 November 2018, then Vice Minister Vu Quang Minh was granted by President Nguyen Phu Trong a life title of Senior Ambassador – the highest rank for a diplomat (Đại sứ Bậc II). During his 35-year career Ambassador Vu Quang Minh has received a number of prestigious awards and honours, including Viet Nam´s Labour Orders (third and second rank), two times Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Sahametrei, Moha Sereivath grade (highest) and one time Commander of the Royal Order of Sahametrei, Tepidin grade (third rank) by the Royal Government of the Kingdom of Cambodia.

Former Vice Minister and Senior Ambassador Vu Quang Minh’s professional expertise includes government affairs, economic diplomacy, economic development and policy, trade dispute settlement,  trade and investment promotion, FDI attraction, globalization and economic integration, including WTO, FTAs and multilateral economic cooperation fora such as APEC, ASEAN, and ASEM; Viet Nam’s involvement in the World Economic Forum’s activities, G7, G20, and other international economic policy fora such as the Boao Economic Forum (China), Pan Beibu Economic Forum, and Future of Asia (Japan); and regional development cooperation such as CLV, CLMV, ACMECS, GMS, Mekong-Japan, Lower Mekong Initiative (Mekong-US), Mekong – Ganga Cooperation, Mekong-Lancang Cooperation, Mekong – Danube, and other Mekong cooperation frameworks; international relations; political and security issues, including territorial disputes and border issues, including border demarcation with China and Cambodia.

He had been actively engaging in organizing executive high level trainings for Vietnamese leaders such as the VELP in cooperation with Harvard and other higher education institutions in Viet Nam and the US.

Senior Ambassador Vu Quang Minh received a prestigious merit-based scholarship to study at the Kiev Taras Shevchenko National University in Ukraine (1982-1983), and then International Economic Relations Department, Moscow International Relations Institute, the former Soviet Union (MGIMO, 1983-1988, BA/MA); graduated with a MPA degree from Princeton University, USA (WWS, 1993-1995) under the Fulbright Scholarship; attended short-term specialized courses, training programs and executive courses at the Manila Foreign Service Institute, Canadian Center for Management – CCMD, the Economic Institute at Boulder, Colorado, and Harvard University (USA), and is fluent in Vietnamese (native), Russian and English. He also has some communication and basic skills in French.

His hobbies include music, both modern and classical, playing classical guitar, reading, literature, movie, chess, table tennis, golf and swimming.

Vu Quang Minh, Senior Ambassador (Permanent Status).

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Joseph Caristena

by Editor BGF | Nov 22, 2023 | Executive Board

With over 20 years of experience of capacity building at all Government levels, Joseph Caristena is a specialist in building the required and necessary “Aqui Culturelle” and “AI Ecosystem” for the new paradigms of the III millennium, helping teams to give priority on what really matters and understand what needs to be done and avoiding to reinvent the wheel and converting complexity into simple concepts.

He worked successfully with many “Government Information Agencies” always focused in bringing these environments to the next level not only with the adoption of the best workflow automated pipeline digital architectures, but also explaining the importance of the taxonomy of knowledge.

As EU DG NEAR TAIEX expert focused on “Capacity Building”, Joseph Caristena gives technical assistance for information exchange to trigger and accelerate the “cultural harmonization process” required between nations to better understand each other’s national identity.

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This research is important because emotions play a crucial role in the processing of all kind of media content perception (artworks included), and specifically, in the enjoyment and experience associated with them.

There is a wide spectrum of emotions and sensations occurring in response to the perceived aesthetic appeal of stimuli determined by a cultural performance (which must not be considered only as an art performance performed by artists, but also as a human interaction like a simple discussion).

The Mediterranean Basin has been the cradle of world civilization since the first settlements. Today in our turbolent age, history recalls the Mediterranean cultural heritage to play a crucial role in promoting dialogue and intercultural understanding.

Joseph Caristena is a performer and a worldwide keynote speaker of social innovation, digital transformation and planetary transition.

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We must not repeat in Space the same mistakes done on Earth.

Rethink the way you think!