Bangkok (VNA) – The largest commemorative site for Presid𒀰ent Ho Chi Minh outside Vietnam was inaugurated in Nachok village, Muang district, in Thailand’s northeastern province of Nakhon Phanom on May ꦛ19, the date of the late President’s birthday.

The event was attended by more than 3,000 people from high-ranking delegations of the Vietnamese Party, the Government, the Vietnam Union of Friendship Associations, the Vietnamese Embassy in Thailand, representatives from the Thai Foreign Ministry, Thai people and Vietnamese expats in Thailand. Construction on the 12,000 square metre site began on March 28, 2014. At total cost of 50 million Thai baht (1.4 million USD), 45 million Thai baht of which was donated by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong during his visit to the Thai-Vietnamese Friendship Village in 2013. The Vietnamese styled memorial site was built to commemorate President Ho Chi Minh’s revolutionary activities in Nakhon Phanom province. Nakhon Phanom, located 800 kilometres northeast from the capital Bangkok, still holds numerous objects, memory and images of the Vietnamese leader, who spent the longest of his time in Thailand (1928-1929) living here. At the event, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and Head of the Party Central Committee Office Nguyen Van Nen highlighted that the memorial site is a significant historical-cultural construction and a symbol for the traditional friendship between the two nations. He noted that the Vietnamese Party, Government and people always respect support provided by the Thai Government and Nakhon Phanom province for President Ho Chi Minh as well as their efforts to preserve the Vietnamese leader’s memorial site in the country. He thanked the Thai Government, Nakhon Phanom authorities, the Thailand-Vietnam Friendship Association and Vietnamese expats for their supports during the construction of the site as well as the organisation of the inaugural ceremony on the occasion of President Ho Chi Minh’s 126th birthday and the 40 th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Thailand. The memorial site will help Vietnamese generations further their understanding about the late President’s revolutionary career and the sound friendship between the two nations, he added. For his part, Governor of the Nakhon Phanom Somsai Vitdamrong hailed the participation of the Vietnamese high-ranking delegation in the inaugural ceremony. He spoke highly of Vietnamese expats’ contributions to developing provincial socio-economy and enhancing friendship relations, economic cooperation and people-to-people exchanges between the Thai province and Vietnamese localities. Earlier, Nen and the Vietnamese delegation met with leader of the Vietnamese People in Thailand, briefing the Vietnamese expats about the nation’s socio-economic situation and results of the 12th National Party Congress. He appreciated efforts made by the Vietnamese expats in stabilising lives and integrating into Thai society, contributing to developing both nations while expressing his hope that they will further their efforts to build a solid community and serve as a bridge to promote Vietnam-Thailand relations. In commemoration of the President’s 126th birthday (May 19, 1890-2016), Vietnamese expats in Algeria, South Africa, Mozambique and Singapore offered incense to the late President.-VNA