Second Secretary of the Vietnamese Embassy in Argentina Le Thanh Xuan underscored Vietnam’s contributions to the birth of the ASEAN Community, saying the event is a historic milestone in regional connectivity, heralding a greater level of development.

During a meeting to review ASEAN’s activities for 2015, Xuan said in a speech that Vietnam has done its best with other member states to turn the East Sea into an area of peace, stability and cooperation for mutual development.

Opening the event, Chargé d’Affaires Ahmad Kamrizamil highlighted the bloc’s achievements this year, including the signing of the 2015 Declaration on the Establishment of ASEAN Community and the Declaration on the ASEAN Community’s Post-2015 Vision on November 22 within the framework of the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur.

He affirmed that the ASEAN Community will come into being on December 31 and Malaysia has done its utmost to fulfill its role of the ASEAN Chair in the year.

Chargé d’Affaires of the Philippines Maria Carmela Cabreira stressed that peace and security in Asia-Pacific and Southeast Asia are closely linked with ensuring peace and security at sea – particularly the East Sea.

She expressed concerns over recent complicated developments in the region, including massive land reclamation and construction on islands, which has exacerbated tension, eroded trust, and left serious and long-term consequences, including the risk of militarisation and conflicts.

The Indonesian and Thai ambassadors presented their respective countries’ contributions to regional peace and development.

They stated that ASEAN is not only a vibrant region with opportunities and prospects, but also deeply integrated into the global security and economic architecture.

Professor Ezequiel Ramoneda from Mar del Plata University and the Centre for Southeast Asian Studies presented the idea of expanding Argentina-ASEAN cooperation.

Alfredo Amigorena, Vice President of the Commercial Office of South American Common Market (Mercosur), said since its inception in June, the office has taken a number of business delegations from Mercosur, including Argentina, to Southeast Asia to seek business opportunities.

VNA