The ASEAN+3 and ASEAN+1 Ministerial Meetings with China and Japan in
Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei, on June 30, as part of the AMM-46,
suggested working together more comprehensively in politics and security
to tackle traditional and non-traditional security challenges.
At the ASEAN+3 meeting with China, Japan and the Republic of Korea
(RoK), the ministers said that they were very satisfied with regional
cooperation in various spheres, including economics, trade, investment,
finance, security and politics.
They stressed the need to
implement the ASEAN+3 Working Plan for the 2017-2013 period in a more
effective way to further deepen ASEAN+3 cooperation.
The
ministers agreed to speed up the implementation of the Statement on
ASEAN+3 partnership on connectivity; a working plan for the Asian Bond
Market and Infrastructure Financing Bond Development Initiative; and the
Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
At the
ASEAN+1 Ministerial Meeting with China, the two sides spoke highly of
the 10 th anniversary of their strategic partnership and the outcomes
reached during the implementation of the 2011-2015 Action Plan. They
hailed the the establishment of the ASEAN-China technology transfer
centre, the ASEAN-China Maritime Cooperation Fund and the signing of the
ASEAN-China memorandum of understanding on health care cooperation.
They recommended further strengthening cooperation in major
fields like trade, investment, connectivity, traffic and energy and food
security.
Participants consented to hold activities this year
to mark the 10 th anniversary of bilateral strategic partnership,
including the Special ASEAN-China Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in August
in China, and an ASEAN economic ministers’ tour of China.
The
two sides emphasised that ASEAN and China should continue fully
realising commitments stated in the Declaration on the Conduct of
Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and the ASEAN-China Joint Statement on the
10 th anniversary of the DOC as well as boost consultations for the
prompt formulation of the Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC).
At the event, they were unanimous in launching official consultations
at the ASEAN-China Senior Official’ Meeting (SOM) on the COC.
Accordingly, the sixth ASEAN-China SOM and the ninth ASEAN-China Working
Group’s Meeting will take place in China this September.
At
the ASEAN-Japan Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, the two sides vowed to
devise the Agreement on Trade in Services and Investment soon, which
lays a foundation for the ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic
Partnership.
ASEAN hailed Japan for its support of the bloc’s
central role in regional structures and the implementation of a Master
Plan on ASEAN Connectivity and the Initiative on ASEAN Connectivity.
Both sides will work together to celebrate the 40 th anniversary of their dialogue relations in Tokyo on December 13-15.
The same day, the sixth Mekong-Japan Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and
the third Mekong-RoK Foreign Ministers’ Meeting got underway.
The Mekong and Japanese foreign ministers reviewed the implementation of
the Mekong-Japan Action Plan to realise the Tokyo Strategy for the
2013-2015 period and increase connectivity in the Mekong region and
narrow the development gap in ASEAN.
The fifth Mekong-Japan Summit is slated to take place in Tokyo later this year.
Meanwhile, the Mekong and RoK ministers reviewed their cooperation
since 2011 and put forth initiatives to cement bilateral links in the
time to come, namely the establishment of a cooperation fund financed by
the RoK, activities during the Mekong-RoK Exchange Year 2014 and the
Mekong-RoK Business Forum.-VNA