Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh held talks
with visiting Philippine Minister of Foreign Affairs Albert F. del
Rosario in Hanoi on July 2.
The two sides
discussed measures to actively realise agreements reached during Prime
Minister Nguyen Tan Dung’s visit to the Philippines from May 21-22.
They agreed to hold the first meeting of the joint
committee led by the two foreign ministries in the third quarter of this
year and promote bilateral cooperation in the fields of politics,
security, defence, economics, agriculture, food security, fisheries,
culture, education and tourism.
Both sides highly
valued the significance of the implementation of bilateral cooperation
agreements and mechanisms, including those on sea, ocean, and fisheries
cooperation.
Deputy PM Minh thanked the Philippine
side for its active support and assistance for the release and
repatriation of Vietnamese fishermen who were detained in the waters of
the Philippines.
Regarding the regional and global situation, the two sides exchanged views on ASEAN cooperation and the East Sea issue.
They
affirmed to continue joining efforts with ASEAN countries in
successfully building the ASEAN Community, esteem the unity and promote
the central role of the association in regional collaboration and the
evolving regional architecture.
ASEAN should
demonstrate a united and responsible voice over important issues in the
region, including the East Sea issue, for peace, stability,
cooperation and development in the region, they stressed.
Amid China’s unilateral illegal acts in the East Sea, including the
placement of the oil rig Haiyang Shiyou-981 in Vietnam’s continental
shelf and exclusive economic zone, the two sides reiterated the
importance of seriously complying with international law, including the
1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the Declaration on
the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) signed between ASEAN and
China in 2002, which highlight principles on exercising restraint,
solving disputes by peaceful means and no use of or threat to use of
force.
They spoke highly of ASEAN’s active role in
and contributions to ensuring peace, stability, security, maritime and
aviation safety in the East Sea.
They also
highlighted the importance of the May 10, 2014 Statement of the ASEAN
Foreign Ministers on the East Sea, which demanded an end to violations
of international law and the DOC, and the exercise of restraint to ease
tensions and not further complicate the situation.
The statement urged the full and serious implementation of the DOC in
parallel with speeding up practical discussions for the early conclusion
of a Code of Conduction in the East Sea (COC).-VNA