VietNamNet Bridge – President Nguyen Minh Triet and his Philippine counterpart, Benigno S. Aquino III, have discussed directions and measures to develop bilateral co-operation more effectively, matching the two countries' potentials.

Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet (left) and Philippine President Benigno Aquino inspect the honour guard in Ha Noi yesterday. (Photo: VNS)
During talks which took place after a solemn welcoming ceremony for the Philippine President in Ha Noi yesterday, Oct 26, the two leaders expressed their pleasure with fine developments in the friendship and multifaceted co-operation between the two countries.

Those developments were marked by a joint statement on Viet Nam-Philippines bilateral co-operation framework in the first 25 years of the 21st century and two-way trade exceeding the 2010 target of US$2 billion two years earlier, they said.

The two leaders agreed to strengthen and expand mutually beneficial co-operation in other fields such as defence, agriculture, education and training, and shipping.

They also emphasised the importance of the Viet Nam-Philippines Joint Committee and agreed to hold the sixth session of the committee as soon as possible.

Regarding the regional and international situation, the two leaders agreed to continue maintaining their close co-ordination and co-operation at regional and global forums, especially the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the East Asian Summit (EAS), the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) and the United Nations (UN).

They shared the view that peace and stability in the East Sea were common aspirations and in the interest of regional countries and highlighted the importance of the strict implementation of Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) towards a future Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC).

Triet spoke highly of the Philippines' support and assistance for Viet Nam in the year it assumed the ASEAN Chair. Meanwhile, the Philippine President thanked the Vietnamese government for facilitating Philippine investment projects in the country.

Concluding the talks, Triet and his Philippine counterpart witnessed the signing of co-operative agreements in defence, academic study, response to oil spills as well as search and rescue work.

Joint committee

The Viet Nam-Philippines joint committee needed to convene its sixth meeting soon to effectively deploy the signed agreements and ink a new action plan for the 2011-14 period, said PM Nguyen Tan Dung.

Dung made the suggestion during a yesterday meeting with Aquino.

The two countries should continue with rice trading contracts, co-operation in fisheries development, stepping up trade and investment relations, and developing science and technology in agriculture, education and training, the PM said.

Viet Nam and the Philippines also needed to co-operate closely in international forums, especially in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum and the United Nations, he said.

The government leader expressed his wish that Viet Nam would receive more support from the Philippines and the President to successfully host the 17th ASEAN Summit and related meetings.

Dung said the Philippine President's ongoing visit would create new momentum to further promote the bilateral relationship, as the two nations were celebrating 35 years of their diplomatic ties.

President Aquino congratulated Viet Nam on its achievements in recent years, which have helped improve the country's position and prestige in the international arena.

The President agreed with PM Dung's proposal to soon hold the 6th meeting of the joint committee to accelerate the already signed co-operation deals. He promised to make an active contribution to the success of the regional summit and related meetings.

Aquino affirmed that the Philippines were willing to co-operate with Viet Nam in mitigating natural disasters as well as in search and rescue activities.

The two leaders discussed a wide range of specific measures to ensure the success of the visit. They agreed that peace and stability in the East Sea were an interest and aspiration of the regional nations and pledged to work together to foster the implementation of the DOC toward building a COC.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News