PM meets with leaders on sidelines of 34th ASEAN Summit
Bangkok (VNA) – Vietnamese Prime
Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc had separate meetings with Thai Prime Minister Prayut
Chan-o-cha, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, and Singaporean Prime Minister Lee
Hsien Loong on the sidelines of the 34th ASEAN Summit in Bangkok on
June 22.
At the meeting with his Thai counterpart, PM
Phuc once again congratulated Prayut Chan-o-cha
on his election as the Prime Minister of Thailand.
The two PMs expressed their satisfaction
over the sound development, closeness and increasing trust of the bilateral
relations in the recent past, agreeing to jointly build an action programme to
create a foundation for the practical, effective and comprehensive implementation
of the Vietnam-Thailand strategic partnership in the new period.
They agreed to join hands to push the implementation of bilateral cooperation mechanisms in 2019, especially the fourth joint cabinet meeting in Vietnam.
The PMs affirmed their determination to further promote bilateral trade and economic ties to realise the goal of 20 billion USD in two-way trade in 2020 with more balanced trade between the two countries.
They also emphasised the importance of
increasing connectivity between Vietnam and Thailand as well as with other
countries in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) through road and waterway
connectivity projects to serve cooperation in trade, transportation, tourism,
and people-to-people exchanges between the regional countries.
PM Phuc thanked Thailand for its warm
welcome and expressed his belief that Thailand will successfully take over the
role of ASEAN Chair in 2019 and make active contributions to building a strong,
united, self-reliant and sustainable ASEAN Community.
While meeting with the Indonesian leader, PM
Phuc congratulated Joko Widodo on his re-election as the President of
Indonesia.
The two leaders reiterated their determination to implement effectively an action programme to realise the Vietnam-Indonesia strategic partnership in 2018-2023 as well as agreements reached during the State visit to Vietnam by President Widodo in September 2018.
They agreed to increase the exchange of all-level
delegations through all channels, while promoting people-to-people exchanges in
a bid to reinforce the bilateral friendship, mutual understanding and trust.
The two leaders also affirmed the resolve to
boost bilateral cooperation in economy, trade and investment to match with
their potential and positions.
PM Phuc suggested the two nations make it
easier for each other’s exports of goods and restrict the application of trade
barriers.
The two leaders emphasised the significance
of marine cooperation and agreed to join hands to implement effectively
relevant contents in this field in the 2018-2023 action programme, including
the promotion of negotiations and delimitation of exclusive economic zones
between the two countries.
The Vietnamese PM asked Indonesia handle
appropriately issues relating to Vietnamese fishermen and fishing boats in the
spirit of friendship, humanity, and in line with international law and
practices.
PM Phuc and President Joko Widodo also
exchanged views on some regional and international issues of mutual concern. They
agreed to strengthen coordination at multilateral forums, especially of the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the United Nations (UN), in
2020 when both countries are non-permanent members of the UN Security Council.
On this occasion, at the request of
Singapore, PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc received his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien
Loong
At the meeting, PM Phuc expressed
dissatisfaction with Lee’s statement on May 31, 2019, relating to Vietnam and
Cambodia in the 1979-1980 period.
PM Phuc affirmed that the history has proved
that Lee’s assessment of Vietnam’s role at that time was incorrect and the
repeat of preconceptions deeply hurt Vietnam and Cambodia, especially relatives
of hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese volunteer soldiers and experts who
sacrificed their lives to bring peace and help liberate the Cambodian people
from the Pol Pot genocidal regime as well as assisting Cambodia during the
later process of national construction full of difficulties and hardships.
Lee explained that Singapore did not aim to
hurt Vietnam but just recalled a sad chapter in the history of Indochina to emphasise
that today’s peace, stability and prosperity the region does not naturally have
and the current context requires the ASEAN to maintain solidarity, closeness
and stronger cooperation.
He also stressed that Singapore attaches
great importance to friendly and trustworthy relations with Vietnam and highly evaluates
Vietnam’s role in and important contributions to the maintenance of peace,
security, stability and development in the region as well as in the process of
building a strong, united and self-reliant ASEAN Community.
The two PMs held that the meeting helped the
two sides better understand each other and agreed to look towards the future
and focus on promoting the Vietnam-Singapore strategic partnership in all
fields.
As Vietnam will take over the role of ASEAN
Chair 2020 and a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for 2020-2021
period, the two sides agreed to increase the exchange of views, consultations
and coordination in terms of stances in regional and international matters of
mutual concern, especially maintaining solidarity, consensus and viewpoints of the
ASEAN for peace, stability and development in the region and the world.
Regarding the East Sea issue, PM Phuc and the
leaders of Thailand, Indonesia and Singapore agreed to continue enhancing
marine cooperation and jointly promote the full implementation of the Declaration
on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and soon finalise a Code of Conduct in the East
Sea (COC), ensuring the interest of the international community.-VNA