PM meets leaders at ASEAN-Australia Special Summit

During these meetings, Chinh thanked the countries for their support and experience sharing in post-pandemic economic recovery and development, and expressed his desire to promote cooperation on important pillars of ASEAN and Vietnam’s relations with other countries, especially in politics-diplomacy, economics-trade-investment, security- defense, education-training, and science-technology, among others.

He expected that the countries would further cooperation to build a united and resilient ASEAN community, strengthen intra-bloc cooperation, and promote its central role in handling security and strategic issues in the region.

He also expected that Vietnam would receive representatives of the countries at an ASEAN future forum due to be held in Hanoi on April 23, 2024.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese welcomed PM Chinh to the summit and said he was looking forward to meeting and holding talks with the Vietnamese PM during the latter’s visit that takes place shortly after the summit.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone said Laos would coordinate closely with Vietnam to effectively implement agreements reached by the two countries’ senior leaders, especially the important results of the recent high-level meeting between the Communist Party of Vietnam and the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party. He thanked Vietnam for supporting Laos in assuming the ASEAN Chairmanship Year in 2024.

Meeting with PM Chinh, Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah agreed to increase the exchange of high-level visits and promote cooperation, especially in the Halal industry. He said he hopes to visit Vietnam again soon.

At another meeting, Indonesian President Joko Widodo agreed to promote rice trade cooperation and agricultural cooperation with Vietnam. He suggested that Vietnam encourage its leading electric vehicle manufacturer Vinfast to invest in Indonesia.

Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin asked the two countries to soon convene a joint Cabinet meeting and promote their connections, while Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos proposed that the two countries cooperate closely in rice production, as well as in climate change response.

Meeting with the Vietnamese PM, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong agreed to promote the operational efficiency of Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Parks (VSIP) in Vietnam; increase cooperation in the fields of digital transformation, green economy, and digital economy; and build and manage population data.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim congratulated Vietnam on its rapid development and expressed his desire to learn from Vietnam’s experience in attracting foreign investment. He agreed to increase high-level visits and deploy bilateral cooperation mechanisms and agreements, along with soon signing a cooperation agreement in the field of Halal.

New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, while meeting with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, said he was looking forward to meeting the Vietnamese PM during his coming visit to Wellington. He appreciated Vietnam’s role in ASEAN, and affirmed that New Zealand would cooperate closely with Vietnam and other ASEAN countries on common regional issues.

Timor Leste Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao thanked Vietnam for its support to Timor-Leste in its bid to officially join ASEAN, and expressed his desire to visit Hanoi soon.

Meanwhile, ASEAN Secretary General Dr Kao Kim Hourn highly appreciated Vietnamese officials working at the ASEAN Secretariat, and affirmed that he personally and the ASEAN Secretariat would attend the ASEAN future forum to be held in Hanoi in April 2023. He expected that the forum would be held annually and become the leading forum to discuss issues related to the future of ASEAN.