A Vietnamese delegation led by Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung, head of the Vietnam ASEAN Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM), attended the ASEAN Joint Consultative Meeting (JCM) in Manila, the Philippines on October 11-13. 

Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung

On the occasion, the Senior Officials’ Meetings (SOMs) of the ASEAN, ASEAN 3 and the East Asia Summit (EAS) were also held to prepare for the 31st ASEAN Summit and related meetings scheduled for November 13-14 in Manila. 

Officials reviewed and completed working programmes, agendas and documents for the 31st ASEAN Summit and related meetings. 

Within the 31st ASEAN Summit framework, several extra events will be held besides the usual summits between the ASEAN and its partners and the EAS Summit. 

The extra events are the Commemorative Summits on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the ASEAN-US and ASEAN-EU Relations, the 20th anniversary of the ASEAN 3 mechanism, the ninth Mekong – Japan Summit, the Leaders’ Meeting of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and a gala celebrating the 50th founding anniversary of the ASEAN.  

The leaders are expected to sign and adopt and acknowledge nearly 60 documents regarding ASEAN cooperation and its ties with partners, including 24 ones of ASEAN, 18 others with partners, 5 within ASEAN 3 framework, and 6 of the EAS. 

They are also due to ink the ASEAN Declaration on Innovation, and the ASEAN Consensus on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers. 

The 31st ASEAN Summit will adopt nominations for ASEAN Secretary General position for the 2018-2022 tenure. 

Vietnam will also take the occasion to introduce its candidate for the position of ASEAN Vice Director General in charge of Political-Security Community for 2018-2021. 

During the JCM, as the coordinator of ASEAN-India ties, the Vietnamese side reported on preparations for the Commemorative Summit of the 25th anniversary of ASEAN-India Dialogue Relations slated for January 2018 in New Delhi and the Informal Dialogue between ASEAN and APEC Leaders on the fringes of the 25th APEC Summit in November 2017 in Da Nang. 

ASEAN officials basically completed documents to submit to the 31st ASEAN Summit and related meetings towards maintaining peace, security and stability in the region while promoting priorities and strengthening ASEAN’s central role. 

The ASEAN’s SOM also looked into several inter-sectoral initiatives such as ASEAN Business Travel Card, mutual consular assistance mechanism for ASEAN citizens in third countries, and measures to improve the efficiency of inter-sectoral, inter-pillar collaboration. 

The ASEAN 3 mechanism groups 10 ASEAN member states and three partners - China, Japan and the RoK. The EAS comprises 10 ASEAN nations and 8 partner countries of China, Japan, the RoK, India, Australia, New Zealand, the US and Russia.

VNA