With the motto of being “active, proactive and responsible”, the Vietnamese delegation led by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung made important contributions to the outcome of the 25th ASEAN Summit and other related meetings held in Myanmar’s capital, Nay Pyi Taw from November 12-13.

Vietnam’s contributions have helped promote the process of building an ASEAN Community and post-2015 development orientations, the center of ASEAN in regional structure and relations between the regional bloc and its partners as well as issues of regional and international concern, including the East Sea issue.

The 25th ASEAN Summit and related meetings were of great significance because the time to reach the target of building an ASEAN Community by 2015 is coming while the situation in the region and in the world is changing complicatedly and has a multi-faced effected on ASEAN, posing both opportunities and challenges.

Therefore, Vietnam’s participation in this event aimed at continually making an active contribution to the fortification and unification of ASEAN, bringing into full play the central role of ASEAN in regional structure, taking full advantage of partners’ support, completing the target of building an ASEAN Community by 2015 and orientations for the post-2015 development period.

Participating in the 25th ASEAN Summit and related meetings, the Vietnamese delegation led by the Prime Minister made significant contributions to the summits’ overall outcomes as follows:

Vietnam further underscored regional solidarity and unity as a prerequisite to ensure the birth of the ASEAN Community by late 2015 and its solid advancement in the future.

The bloc needs to work together actively to reach a common stance, proactively raise its voice on regional issues, and promote its central role in building a regional architecture based on its principles, value and code of conduct, as well as international law.

In terms of the community building roadmap, Vietnam emphasised the responsibility and efforts of each nation and the entire bloc to implement their past commitments. Vietnam always brings into full play the active and responsible spirit in implementing its commitments and is among the countries that meet the highest number of set economic goals, amounting for 89% and is moving to dedicate more to political-security and socio-cultural pillars.

The nation pledged its sustained efforts together with ASEAN member states to guarantee the building of the ASEAN roadmap as set targets.

 Vietnam masterminded a number of key initiatives for the post-2015 Vision for the ASEAN Community, which forms the bedrock of the bloc’s 2016-2025 development orientations. Vietnam suggested stepping up cooperation between ASEAN and its partners to prevent and deal effectively with challenges, such as security, maritime safety, climate change, water resource security, natural disasters and epidemic diseases.

Vietnam’s positive contributions were acknowledged and signified by ASEAN declarations and the ASEAN-US Joint Statement on Climate Change and the Joint Statement of the 9th East Asia Summit on Regional Response to the Outbreak of Ebola.

Third, regarding the regional situation, Vietnam and ASEAN members shared the view that the interest of those in and outside the region is secured by the maintenance of regional peace, stability and development, including the issue of peace, stability, and maritime and aviation security and freedom in the East Sea.

Vietnam underlined the necessity for the concerned parties to seriously observe international law, the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), resolve disputes by peaceful means and properly implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), notably Article 5 of the Declaration on exercising restraint and avoiding actions that complicate or increase regional tensions, and accelerate substantial negotiations aiming to soon achieve a legally binding Code of Conduct on the East Sea (COC).

On the sidelines of the summits, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung had bilateral meetings with ASEAN leaders and partners to examine ways to bolster bilateral cooperation and debate issues of mutual interest.

The 25th ASEAN Summit and other related meetings, including (ASEAN+1 with China, India, Japan, the US, the United Nations, the Summit to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of ASEAN-Australia Partnership, ASEAN+3 Summit and the EAS) were held in Myanmar’s capital Nay Pyi Taw from November 12-13.

The ASEAN Summit and related meetings between ASEAN and its partners approved many important documents, including the Nay Pyi Taw Declaration on Post-2015 ASEAN Community Vision, the ASEAN Declaration on Strengthening the ASEAN Secretariat and Reviewing the ASEAN Organs, the ASEAN Declaration and the ASEAN-the US Declaration on Climate Change, the ASEAN-Japan Declaration on cooperation to combat trans-national crime and terrorism and the ASEAN-United Nations Work Plan 2015.

VNA/VNP