The 19th ASEAN Summit and other relate Summits held in Bali, Indonesia, have come to a successful end. In the spirit of “proactivity, activeness and responsibility”, Vietnam has made certain important contributions with solutions proposed to enhance the cooperation in building the ASEAN Community, deploying the ASEAN Connection and expanding the Association’s foreign relations, considering and settling international and regional issues of mutual concern.
On this occasion, Foreign Minister Phạm Bình Minh talked about the key points of the Summits and Vietnam’s contributions to the Summits’ success in an interview given to the media.
- Would you please the Minister talk about the key points of the 19th ASEAN Summit and other related summits held in Bali, Indonesia?
Foreign Minister Phạm Bình Minh: The 19th ASEAN Summit and other Summits between ASEAN and its partners, including the ASEAN+3 Summit, the East Asia Summit (EAS), the ASEAN+1 Summit with China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, India, the US and the UN had happened on November 17-19, 2011 in Bali, Indonesia.
The ASEAN-China Summit this year is at the same time the Summit to celebrate the 20th establishment of dialogue relations. For the first time Russia and the US had participated in the EAS as the official members.
With the theme “the ASEAN Community within the Community of Global Nations” the summits this time had focused on the main contents of enhancing the building of the ASEAN Community; the regional partnership and connection; expanding and deepening the ASEAN relations with the partners and exchanges in the regional and international issues of mutual concern, particularly the issues relating to peace, security and cooperation in responding to the arising challenges such as natural calamities, climate change, maritime security, transnational criminals and so on.
- What are the main results of the Summits this time, the Minister?
Minister Phạm Bình Minh: After over an urgent and active week of working, the meetings at the officials’ level, at the ministerial level and the ASEAN Summit as well as the ASEAN Summits with the partners had recorded the following important results:
Firstly, the ASEAN leaders reaffirmed the determination to deploy effectively the roadmap of building the ASEAN Community by 2015 and the ASEAN Connection Plan, in which it is necessary to implement in a full and effective manner the agreements as well as the key programs and plans on connection and bridge the development gaps, develop the subregion, including the Mekong subregion, making a contribution to promoting the sustainable and equal development in the region. ASEAN will also intensify the co-ordination and supervision of the implementation at the national and regional levels; integrate the regional commitments with the goals and programs of national development; make satisfactory investments in education, develop human resource; intensify the advertisement, attract more support and assistance from the business area, the sources of socialization and the partners. In the process of building the ASEAN Community, more than ever, the ASEAN countries are of unanimity of views that it is necessary to bring into full play the solidarity and unity within ASEAN, in which as far as the issues that are still in differences are concerned, the member countries will make efforts to resolve them satisfactorily in the spirit of friendship, of the ASEAN Charter and for the benefits of the Association.
Secondly, the ASEAN countries are of unanimity of views that they will intensify the co-ordination of standpoints on the global issues of the regional concern at the international forums such as the UN, APEC, ASEM, G20, through which the Association’s role and voice at these forums will be raised as well as contributing its responsibility to handling effectively the emerging challenges. To promote that role, the ASEAN needs to continue to reserve its highest priority to build the united and strong ASEAN Community; to focus on the vital issues of the region as well as the international issues of mutual concern; to guarantee the widespread consultation and common consensus of the Association together with the suitable contribution of the member countries.
Thirdly, the ASEAN continues to reaffirm its open foreign policy, encourage the partners to join in building and making active contributions to handling the issues of mutual concern, for peace, stability and development in the region as well as the support of the ASEAN’s important points and priorities; to promote the leading role of the ASEAN in pushing ahead the construction of a regional structure on the basis of the processes of the current regional cooperation and in conformity with the interests and characteristics of the region. The partners have attached importance to the relations with the ASEAN and accelerated their cooperation with the ASEAN in economics, trade, education, science and technology and the transnational issues; supported the ASEAN to build its Community, deploy the connection, develop the subregion and bridge the development gap. The countries have also welcomed Russia and the US for officially participating in the EAS for the first time, wishing that these two countries will join hands to cooperate and make active contributions to peace, security and development in the region.
Finally, on the regional and international issues, the leaders have laid emphasis on further intensifying the efforts for peace, stability and cooperation in the region; at the same time it is necessary to reserve priorities to cooperation and to raise the abilities to respond effectively to the emerging challenges such as climate change, natural calamities, maritime security, energy and food security, the effective management and use of the water resource. At the Summit, the countries have shared their sympathy, solidarity and readiness with the countries hardest hit by natural disasters, floods, storms, earthquakes, tsunamis like Thailand, Cambodia, the Philippines, Myanmar, Vietnam, Japan. As far as the East Sea issue is concerned, the Summit has laid emphasis on peace, stability and security in the East Sea, in which maritime security and safety, the common interests of the region and of all the countries; the concerned parties need to settle the disputes by peaceful means, observe international law, particularly the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), implement fully the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties on the South China Sea (DOC), in the direction of building a Code of Conduct on the South China Sea (COC).
Peace, security, safety and freedom of navigation in the region and on the East Sea are the concern and common interests of the region and the related countries, so the region and the countries need to join hands to strive for this goal. Besides, the ASEAN will continue to promote effectively all the instruments and mechanisms of the ASEAN’s political cooperation and security such as the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC), the Treaty on the South East Asia Nuclear Weapons Free Zone (SEANWFZ), the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties on the South China Sea (DOC), the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the Expanded ASEAN Military Ministers Meeting and so on to make a contribution to pushing ahead peace, security and cooperation for development in the region as well as intensifying and promoting the ASEAN’s leading role to contribute to the above-said objectives. The countries need to settle all the disputes by peaceful means; observe international law, particularly the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), to guarantee the respect and full and effective implementation of DOC and to soon build the COC; at the same time it is necessary to continue to enhance cooperation in other seas issues, in which there is security and safety for the maritime lines, the sea salvage and rescue, the combat against piracy and sea criminals on the basis of international law and UNCLOS.
On the Mekong issue, we have had exchanges with Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand on acceleration of development, use, preservation and management in a sustainable way of the water resource of the Mekong river; proposed to together make researches in a scientific, general and systematic manner so as to use the water source of the Mekong river in a reasonable way, ensuring the sustainable development for the downstream as well as the upstream countries. We have also coordinated with these countries to make a proposal to Japan to help so as to be able to conduct a general research on the environmental and social impacts before making a decision on building the works on the main current of the Mekong river.
In a capacity of a coordinating country in dialogue relations at the ASEAN-China Summit (2009-2012), we have coordinated with the ASEAN countries and China to make a contribution to further enhancing the strategic partnership between the ASEAN and China as well as coordinating to deploy the activities in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the relations between the two sides; the ASEAN and China need to continue to push ahead the effective implementation of the 2011-2015 Action Plan, in which there is the full and effective implementation of DOC, in the direction to COC, making a contribution to strengthening peace, security and stability in the region.
On the sideline activities, Prime Minister Nguyễn Tấn Dũng attended the Mekong-Japan Summit and had contacts and exchanges with the leaders of many countries having bilateral relations and on the issues of mutual concern./.
- Thank you, the Minister./.
