Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha (L) hands the chairmanship hammer to his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc at the ceremony in Bangkok on November 4 evening (Photo: VNA) Bangkok (VNA) – Ceremonies were held in Bangkokon November 4 evening to wrap up the 35th ASEAN Summit and related summits andhand over the ASEAN chairmanship for 2020 to Vietnam.
Following the closing ceremony, Prime MinisterPrayut Chan-o-cha of Thailand, the host country of ASEAN in 2019, handed thechairmanship hammer to his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc.
In his speech, PM Phuc noted Vietnam has chosen“Cohesive and Responsive” as the theme for the ASEAN Year 2020.
He said 2020 will mark five years since theformation of the ASEAN Community. While efforts to boost regional connectivityand build the Community are being enhanced, and in the face of swift and complexdevelopments in the region and the world, the capability of sustainablecohesiveness is all the more important to ASEAN.
In 2020, Vietnam wishes to focus on fosteringthe bloc’s sustainable cohesiveness through consolidating solidarity and unity,increasing economic connectivity, further intensifying the values andidentities of the ASEAN Community, improving the efficiency of ASEAN’sapparatus, and stepping up relations with the bloc’s partners in the globalcommunity, the PM affirmed.
Through such sustainable cohesiveness, the ASEANCommunity can promote its active and effective responsiveness to opportunitiesand challenges, including the strong development of science-technology, changesin global and regional economies, and transnational challenges that areaffecting the stable and sustainable development of countries and people’slives, according to him.
PM Phuc said cohesiveness and responsiveness aregreatly complementary to each other, adding that a cohesive and developedcommunity needs to increase its responsiveness to external factors and, inreturn, responsiveness can only be attained if ASEAN is a strongly cohesivebloc.
Vietnam looks forwards to the active support andassistance from other ASEAN members and partners to realise the spirit of thetheme of the ASEAN Year 2020, he stressed.
Following his speech, the logo for the ASEANYear 2020 was debuted, and a short video introducing the chairmanship ofVietnam screened at the ceremony./.
VNA
