Vietnam attends 25th ASEAN-RoK dialogue, Indo-Pacific Business Summit

Dung, who is also head of Vietnam’s ASEAN SOM, called on the RoK to coordinate in vaccine research and production, and ensure the fair supply of vaccines.

He appealed to the RoK to assist the ten-member group in promoting equitable and sustainable development in ASEAN’s sub-regions, including the Mekong.

Dung emphasised the need to maintain and boost multilateral cooperation, step up dialogues and trust building, uphold international law, and peacefully settle disputes, especially in the context of more and more emerging challenges, so as to ensure a peaceful, stable and favourable environment for development.

He affirmed that ASEAN supports the RoK’s efforts in promoting the peace process on the Korean Peninsula, calling on relevant sides to resume peace dialogues and make more contributions to gain peace, long-term stability and full denuclearisation on the peninsula.

ASEAN stands ready to facilitate dialogues between concerned sides at ASEAN-led mechanisms, he said.

Dung used the occasion to reiterate ASEAN’s principled stance on the East Sea, and expressed his hope that the RoK will continue to play a constructive role and support the bloc’s efforts to turn the East Sea into waters of peace, friendship and cooperation, as well as ASEAN's role in supporting Myanmar.

At the event, ASEAN and the RoK highlighted the positive developments in their cooperation, including their effective coordination in pandemic response and an increase of 9 percent year-on-year in trade that amounted to around 53 billion USD in the first four months of this year.

Deputy Foreign Minister Yeo Seung-bae, who is head of the RoK SOM, said the RoK attaches importance to the strategic partnership with ASEAN, noting the grouping is a priority in the country’s New Southern Policy Plus strategy.

The RoK backs ASEAN’s centrality in the regional architecture, as well as the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific, he noted.

The RoK informed that it has contributed additional 200 million USD to the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (COVAX AMC) and pledged to further assist ASEAN in the pandemic fight through implementing the 10-million USD COVID-19 rapid response programme and establishing a dialogue channel between the two sides.

The two sides agreed to continue prioritising cooperation in the COVID-19 combat, and coordinate in mitigating the pandemic’s socio-economic impact for comprehensive recovery and sustainable growth.

The countries also stressed efforts for the early ratification and enforcement of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement.

Regarding regional and international issues of shared concern, the countries agreed on the need to maintain an environment of peace, security and stability to facilitate anti-pandemic and recovery efforts.

They called on relevant parties to soon resume dialogues, fully implement resolutions adopted by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and reached agreements, promote dialogues and cooperation, and maintain peace, stability, denuclearisation on the Korean peninsula.

The RoK affirmed its support for ASEAN’s stance on the East Sea issue and lauded the grouping’s role in forging cooperation, dialogue and trust building in the region, and in building an effective and efficient Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) in accordance with international law and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (1982 UNCLOS).

As for the Myanmar situation, the RoK welcomed outcomes of the ASEAN Leaders’ Meeting on April 24, saying it backs ASEAN’s role in promoting dialogues and helping Myanmar seek solutions to stabilise the situation.

In another move, the Vietnamese diplomat underlined the increasingly important role that the Indo-Pacific region is playing in promoting development cooperation and global economic connectivity, at the inaugural session of the 2021 Indo-Pacific Business Summit, which was held virtually the same day.

The event was jointly organised by India’s Ministry of External Affairs and the Confederation of Indian Industry.

Dung said that the region, which is home to major and most-dynamic economies of the world, is, however, facing traditional and non-traditional challenges such as climate change, terrorism and diseases, particularly the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic.

He added that it is an urgent need to pursue and build an Indo-Pacific region of peace, cooperation, freedom, openness and inclusion in order to bring equal development benefits to the majority of people and countries in the region. 

He asked regional countries to boost cooperation, share and ensure COVID-19 vaccine supply, maintain the supply chain and restructure the economy along an innovative and modern direction. 

The nations also need to push ahead with digital connection and e-commerce, expand entry into each other’s market, and bolster maritime connectivity and trade facilitation.

Speaking highly of the role and position of India in the order of the region and the world, along with the country’s contributions to enhancing economic connectivity, upgrading infrastructure and raising people’s living conditions, Dung expressed his belief that with strengths across multiple spheres, India will serve as one of the locomotives which help developing economies repel the pandemic and recover.

He took the occasion to underline Vietnam’s extensive and inclusive international integration policy and accomplishments of the country in renewal and building the economy based on science-technology, innovation and digital transformation.

The official also spoke highly of the Vietnam-India comprehensive strategic partnership, calling on both countries to foster cooperation in information-technology, digital economy and supply chain diversification, and seek deeper participation in the global supply chain, thereby benefiting people in their countries and the region.