Vietnam’s Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh met separately with his
counterparts from Brunei, Japan, the Republic of Korea and Norway on
June 30, talking ways to increase bilateral ties further.
The minister’s meetings took place on the sidelines of the 46 th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting (AMM-46) in Brunei.
In his meeting with Brunei Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Mohamed Bolkiah, Minh hailed the host country’s efforts in organising
the AMM-46.
Both expressed their delight at the fruitful
development in the friendship and multi-faceted cooperation between the
two countries.
They agreed to the prompt organisation of the
first Vietnam-Brunei Joint Committee to review the partnership and
propose new areas of cooperation, especially in fields of high
potential, such as trade, agriculture, oil and gas and labour.
Minh confirmed Vietnam’s support for Brunei to successfully assume the ASEAN Chair 2013.
He expressed his hope that the country will continue working with
Vietnam and other ASEAN members to accelerate the formation of the ASEAN
Community, which will more firmly connect the bloc’s members.
The Vietnamese minister also urged Brunei to work with the bloc to find
consensus over the implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of
Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and the terms of the proposed Code of
Conduct in the Eat Sea (COC).
Meeting with Japanese Foreign
Minister Fumio Kishida, the two sides noted with pleasure the rapid and
comprehensive development seen in the Vietnam-Japan relationship,
especially at a time when the two countries are celebrating the 40 th
anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic ties.
Kishida
emphasised that Vietnam is an important strategic partner of Japan, as
demonstrated when Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe decided to visit
Vietnam first after taking office.
The two ministers agreed to enhance the exchange of high-ranking delegations to deepen the strategic partnership.
They also agreed to finalise plans for the fifth Vietnam-Japan
Cooperation Committee in Tokyo, which will map out the next steps for
their strategic partnership, especially in economics, science-technology
and human resources development.
The Japanese side pledged to
continue its official development assistance (ODA) to Vietnam and
foster cooperation to effectively implement the fifth phase of the
Vietnam-Japan Joint Initiative while assisting the country in devising
its modernisation strategy.
In his meeting with RoK
counterpart Yun Byung Se, Minh declared his satisfaction with the rapid
and effective development between the two countries in all areas,
especially in the cooperation between the two foreign ministries.
Yun Byung Se replied by saying Vietnam is the RoK’s leading ASEAN
partner, adding that his country wishes to further boost the strategic
cooperative partnership between them.
Together they proposed a
number of measures to lift the relationship, such as maintaining
delegation exchanges and promoting trade and investment ties.
Minh then asked the RoK to consider signing a memorandum of
understanding on labour cooperation between the two countries, creating
conditions for Vietnam to continue bringing its guest workers to the
RoK.
At the end of the discussions, Minh conveyed President
Truong Tan Sang’s invitation to RoK President Park Gyn Hae to visit
Vietnam soon.
In his final meeting in a busy day, Minh met his
Norwegian counterpart Espen Barth Eide. He praised Norway’s assistance
to Vietnam in coping with the challenges posed by climate change.
He also congratulated Norway on the country’s signing of the Treaty of
Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia, expressing his hope that the
country will actively contribute to peace, stability and development in
the region.
For his part, Eide confirmed Norway’s recognition
of Vietnam’s role in the region as well as the country’s huge market
potential.-VNA