General Ngo Xuan Lich, Politburo member, Vice Secretary of the Central Military Commission and Minister of National Defence of Vietnam, delivers a speech at the 9th Beijing Xiangshan Forum

The forum, themed “Maintaining InternationalOrder and Promoting Peace in the Asia-Pacific”, attracts hundreds of defenceand military leaders, along with experts from many countries and organisationsaround the world.

Addressing a plenary session on security risk managementin Asia-Pacific, General Ngo Xuan Lich, Politburo member, Vice Secretary of theCentral Military Commission and Minister of National Defence of Vietnam, saidthere are many latent complex and unpredictable factors in the political andsecurity environment of the region which pose a number of security challengesand risks, both traditional and non-traditional.

To manage well security risks in Asia-Pacific,he called on all countries to uphold the rule of law and mutual respect ininternational relations as well as in the settlement of disputes and differences,enhance powers’ sense of responsibility, bring into play the role andeffectiveness of bilateral and multilateral cooperation mechanisms in buildingtrust and managing security in the region, and resolve disputes by peacefulmeans in the partnership spirit and for the responsibility towards thecommunity.

Regarding the East Sea situation, Lich said thisarea faces numerous security risks due to impact of many factors, includingcompetition among powers, sovereignty disputes, and non-traditional securityissues.

The East Sea situation is still developingcomplicatedly, and if it is not resolved well, the regional peace and stabilitywill be affected, trust among countries eroded, and cooperation efforts in theregion hampered, he stressed.

The minister emphasised Vietnam’s stance ofsupporting and protecting the freedom of passage, security, and safety ofnavigation and aviation in the East Sea in line with international law.

Vietnam persists with the policy of resolvingthe East Sea issue by peaceful measures in line with international law andpractice, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea,he said.

The East Sea issue must be handled by peacefulmeasures, not using force or threatening to use force, basing on internationallaw, and respecting legitimate interests of each country in the partnershipspirit and for the responsibility towards the community, Lich stressed, addingthat Vietnam pledges to, together with other countries, strive to fostercooperation so as to build the East Sea into an area of peace, stability anddevelopment, for the sake of all countries in and outside the region.

In his speech, the official also affirmed thatthe security and stability of China and ASEAN countries are inseparable.Therefore, the two sides have always respected and bolstered cooperation in allspheres, with defence and security being important pillars.

Vietnam highly values China’s contributions todevelopment cooperation, the settlement of global and regional security issues,the cooperation mechanisms that ASEAN holds the central role, along with thetwo sides’ proposals and initiatives to maintain a peaceful and stableenvironment for the sake of each country and the whole region, Minister Lichnoted.

According to him, in the spirit of equality andmutual respect and on the basis of the two countries’ traditional solidarityand friendship, the outstanding problems in Vietnam-China relations need to bepersistently settled in conformity with the high-level agreements between theirleaders, thus meeting the two peoples’ aspirations and contributing to regionalpeace, stability and development.

He added that in 2020, Vietnam will hold theASEAN Chairmanship and act as a non-permanent member of the UN SecurityCouncil. It welcomes and appreciates practical support and cooperation of allcountries in and outside the region to fulfill its new duties.

On the occasion of the 10th founding anniversaryof the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus – one of the most effectivesecurity management mechanisms in the region - Vietnam proposes ASEAN andpartner countries to together build a strategic vision on security inAsia-Pacific to serve as a foundation to orient cooperation frameworks andtargets in the time ahead, for an Asian-Pacific region of peace, stability,friendship and prosperity that can become an example of cooperation in theworld, the Vietnamese official said.

The Beijing Xiangshan Forum is held annually todiscuss regional security issues. This year’s event is scheduled to lastthrough October 22./.VNA