"The East Sea issue is a common concern of the region"

On June 30, Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh led the Vietnamese delegation to attend the 46th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting (AMM-46) in the capital city of Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei.

Vietnamese delegation at the conference. (Photo: Chi Giap-Kim Dung/Vietnam+)

The conference focused on discussing many important issues of ASEAN, including building the ASEAN Community and implementing the decisions of the 22nd ASEAN Summit in Brunei in April; ASEAN's future direction; ASEAN's regional cooperation architecture and foreign relations; and regional and international issues.

Speaking at the Conference, Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh mentioned the orientation of ASEAN after 2015, affirming that while building an ASEAN Community "connected economically, politically and sharing social responsibilities" is the central task of ASEAN, the Association must also prepare for the future after 2015, in which it is necessary to continue to be determined and make efforts to ensure the timely implementation of the criteria for building the Community. The Association also needs to have a plan to announce the birth of the ASEAN Community on December 31, 2015, including a separate communication plan for this meaningful event.

Minister Pham Binh Minh said that ASEAN needs to develop a preparatory document for the post-2015 period, along with re-emphasizing the foundation and goals of ASEAN today and a future ASEAN Community that is a consensual, united, strong ASEAN, operating on the basis of the ASEAN Charter, promoting its central role in many multilateral cooperation mechanisms.

The Minister also emphasized the need to strengthen the appropriate institutional framework to implement post-2015 orientations through enhancing the capacity of the ASEAN Secretariat, improving the operational efficiency of ASEAN mechanisms and institutions to meet the increasing requirements of the post-2015 development period and preparing for the review of the ASEAN Charter.

Overview of the conference. (Photo: Chi Giap-Kim Dung/Vietnam+)

Regarding regional issues of common concern, Minister Pham Binh Minh affirmed that the East Sea issue is a common concern. The Minister emphasized that in recent times, there have been many complicated developments in the East Sea, especially the increasing acts of imposing claims and incidents of Vietnamese fishing boats being shot or rammed in areas that are completely within Vietnam's exclusive economic zone. This is contrary to international law, the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea as well as the spirit and content of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC).

Minister Pham Binh Minh suggested that, in the face of these developments, ASEAN should call on all relevant parties to respect the agreed principles and commitments as stipulated in the DOC, the ASEAN Six-Point Principles on the East Sea, especially the principles of respecting international law and the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea, exercising self-restraint and not using force, and resolving disputes by peaceful means. At the same time, the parties need to continue to strengthen trust building; including establishing effective communication channels, cooperating to prevent incidents, establishing a regional arrangement on search and rescue of people and vessels in distress at sea, and establishing a “hotline” between ASEAN and China on maritime issues. On this occasion, Minister Pham Binh Minh announced that Vietnam had just successfully organized a workshop within the framework of the DOC on cooperation in search and rescue of people and vessels in distress at sea in Hanoi on June 19-20, at which many very practical recommendations were proposed.

Regarding the DOC, Minister Pham Binh Minh welcomed some recent developments in the consultations between ASEAN and China on the implementation of the DOC, including the results of the ASEAN-China Senior Officials' Political Consultation in early April and the 8th Meeting of the ASEAN-China Joint Working Group on the Implementation of the DOC in late May. Welcoming the plan to hold the 6th ASEAN-China Senior Officials' Meeting on the Implementation of the DOC and the 9th Meeting of the ASEAN-China Joint Working Group on the Implementation of the DOC in September this year, Minister Pham Binh Minh suggested that ASEAN continue to coordinate with China to maintain this positive momentum.

At the same time, Minister Pham Binh Minh emphasized that in the current situation, it is imperative for countries to further accelerate the process of reaching a Code of Conduct soon to better ensure peace, stability, security and maritime safety in the East Sea. Accordingly, ASEAN needs to continue to urge China to participate in official negotiations on the Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC), especially in the context that this year the two sides will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the strategic partnership.

The Minister supported Thailand's proposal to hold the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Retreat in mid-August in Hua Hin, Thailand, as well as the proposal for the ASEAN-China Summit to adopt a joint statement towards the development of the COC. Minister Pham Binh Minh asked ASEAN to make efforts to realize these proposals./.

According to (TTXVN)- LT