Vietnamese youths invite ‘random foreigner’ to film a Mid-Autumn video, then discover he’s EU ambassador

TikToker Ha Bang (Tran Thi Hong Tham), from Tuyen Quang, had an unexpectedly memorable encounter with Julien Guerrier, the European Union (EU) ambassador to Vietnam, while he was enjoying the Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations in Tuyen Quang.

She took photos and filmed a video with the ambassador, using a filter to give them rosy cheeks and cute expressions before inviting him to join them in shouting, “I love Vietnam!”

The young people even made Guerrier repeat the line three times until everyone got it perfectly in sync.

Their video has received millions of views and thousands of interactions on social media. But at the time, the group had no idea that the casually dressed foreigner they had approached was an ambassador.

Ambassador in shorts, T-shirt joins Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations

Ha Bang said she and her friends went downtown on the evening of September 1 to watch giant lantern floats parade through the streets during the early Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations.

Tens of thousands of residents and visitors took to the streets as the enormous illuminated floats paraded through the province.

Amid the crowds, Ha Bang spotted a foreign man dressed casually in shorts and a T-shirt, cheering and joining the crowd as they watched the giant Mid-Autumn lantern floats.

“As we usually do when we meet foreigners, we greeted him and made some small talk in English. He also spoke Vietnamese and was very friendly, so I asked him to take photos and film a video with us,” Ha Bang said.

She was surprised that the man could speak Vietnamese and was so friendly and willing to pose for photos and appear in videos.

A young girl named Nhi in the group then suggested inviting the “foreigner” to join their “I love Vietnam” video.

The group lined up and posed in the middle of the street, loudly shouting, “I love Vietnam!” They repeated the chant three times until everyone got the chant perfectly in sync and loud enough

Later, someone accompanying the visitor showed Ha Bang several newspaper articles featuring photos of him. That was when the group realized that their new acquaintance was Julien Guerrier, the EU ambassador to Vietnam.

Never expect the ambassador to be so down-to-earth

The group was surprised that someone in such an important position could be so approachable and friendly.

“We used a filter to make ourselves look prettier. Even the ambassador didn’t mind appearing in a video with the filter, with those cute rosy cheeks,” Ha Bang said with a laugh.

EU Ambassador Julien Guerrier began his term in Vietnam in September 2023. 

He has become known for his friendly, approachable image and regularly explores sidewalk eateries and street food in Vietnam.

He said he has visited 26 of Vietnam’s 34 provinces and cities to experience local life.

For Guerrier, immersing himself in the everyday lives of Vietnamese people — eating local dishes, strolling along streets and chatting with ordinary residents — gives him a sense of closeness that he rarely finds elsewhere.

He frequently appears in casual clothes and has been seen sitting and chatting with Hanoi residents over glasses of draft beer at sidewalk eateries.

He likes pho and stir-fried water spinach and enjoys riding on the back of a motorbike to experience everyday life in Vietnam.