Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attends the 16th East Asia Summit on October 27 (Photo: VNA)– Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on October 27 evening
attended the 16th East Asia Summit (EAS), which gathered leaders of
10 ASEAN member states and their partners, including China, Japan, the Republic
of Korea, Australia, New Zealand, India, Russia and the US, and the ASEAN
Secretary General.
He stressed the need for EAS countries to continue enhancing
their strategic role in promoting transparent behaviour and frank dialogue,
building trust, harmonising differences and increasing the sharing of responsibility in order to contribute to maintaining a peace and stable environment, and win-win
cooperation in the region and the world.
He suggested countries join hands in managing changes in an
appropriate and effective way; promote multilateral cooperation, policy
harmonisation, and action coordination to effectively respond to emerging
challenges, prevent the risk of instability and boost sustainable socio-economic
development and recovery, especially after the pandemic.
He also proposed EAS partners step up cooperation to improve
health capacity, facilitate full and timely access to COVID-19 vaccines and treatment drugs, build a mechanism to share information and experience, and improve
early warning capacity. He affirmed his support for international commitments
on health measures to combat the global pandemic.
The Vietnamese Government leader called on ASEAN and its partners to cooperate in
increasing opportunities to access to each other’s markets; boosting exports,
digital and green technology transfer, and high-quality human resources training;
promoting equitable, sustainable and inclusive recovery in the region in
association with climate change adaptation, green development, digital
transformation, circular economy and inclusive economy.
He also called on the countries to uphold the sense of responsibility and
behave in accordance with their commitments; respect each other; promote
multilateral cooperation and respect for the rule of law; maintain healthy
international relations; avoid affecting peace, stability, cooperation and
development in the region; and ensuring security, safety and freedom of
navigation and aviation in the East Sea.
The nations should exercise self-restraint, avoid unilateral
actions that may complicate the situation, and resolve disputes by peaceful
means through dialogue and based on international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS), Chinh stressed, calling for efforts to fully implement the Declaration on the Conduct
of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), promote negotiations to build an efficient, effective and substantive Code
of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) in line with international law,
including the UNCLOS 1982, according to the PM.
Leaders of the EAS and international organisations attend the summit on October 27 (Photo: VNA)
At the summit, the leaders
applauded the outcomes achieved during the implementation of the Manila Plan of
Action 2018 - 2022, ordered coordination to build a new action plan for the
next period that matches the situation, and pledged to prioritise efforts in
response to the pandemic and towards green and sustainable development.
They stressed that
the EAS should remain the leading ASEAN-led forum and a platform for leaders to
discuss strategic issues of the region.
They agreed to
foster multilateral, regional, and international cooperation in resolving
emerging challenges, effectively responding to COVID-19, maintaining and
promoting economic connectivity and trade - investment links, and restoring and
stabilising regional and global supply chains towards comprehensive and
sustainable recovery.
Participants shared
the view that the EAS should make effective contributions to efforts in
guaranteeing regional peace, security, and stability.
The countries
emphasised the importance of ensuring peace, stability, security, and safety of
navigation and overflight in the East Sea and building the waters into a sea of
peace, friendship, and cooperation. They underlined the need for self-restraint
from acts that may escalate tensions or complicate the situation; for no
militarisation, use, or threat to use force; and for peaceful settlement of
disputes on the basis of international law, including the UNCLOS 1982.
They called on ASEAN
and China to fully and effectively implement the DOC, while building an
efficient and effective COC that is in line with international law, including
the 1982 UNCLOS.
Concluding the summit, the
participating leaders adopted the EAS statements on mental health cooperation,
sustainable recovery, and economic growth through tourism recovery./.