Deputy Foreign Minister holds talks with German foreign affairs official

Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung (Photo: VNA) 

Hanoi, (VNA) – Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Quoc Dung held talks with Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office of Germany Niels Annen on March 19 at the proposal of the German side.  

During the talks, the German official congratulated Vietnam on its success as Chair of ASEAN in 2020 and appreciated the close coordination between Vietnam in its capacity as Chair of ASEAN, and Germany as Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of 2020. He said the coordination contributed to important results in the ASEAN-EU partnership in general and ASEAN-Germany partnership in particular, including the elevation of ASEAN-EU ties to a strategic partnership.

Annen also took note of the good development of bilateral relations across the fields, and affirmed Germany’s policy on attaching importance to and strengthening Germany’s presence in and cooperation with the Southeast Asian region, in which Vietnam continues to be a high priority.

Deputy Minister Dung affirmed that Vietnam treasures the cooperative relations with Germany and values the support and coordination that Germany provided for Vietnam in 2020 in the framework of ASEAN and the UN Security Council.

The Vietnamese official welcomed Germany’s stronger cooperation with ASEAN and regional countries, as well as its support for the ASEAN in building the ASEAN Community and responding to emerging challenges.  

Mentioning the situation in Myanmar, the German Minister of State said Germany pays close attention to and is concerned about the instability and escalating violence in the country. He noted that Germany supports ASEAN’s efforts in this regard and expects the bloc to continue playing its role in helping with dialogue and the search for a solution.

Deputy Minister Dung shared the concern about the developments in Myanmar and informed the Germany side that Vietnam is working actively with other ASEAN countries to help find a solution, while calling for restraint, dialogue and reconciliation so as to bring the situation in Myanmar back to normal for the interests of Myanmar people as well as for the sake of peace, stability and development in the region./.