At the meeting (Source: VNA) New Delhi (VNA) – The 19th ASEAN-India Senior Officials’Meeting (SOM) took place in New Delhi, India on April 5-6, discussing ways topromote cooperation between the two sides.
During the event, chaired by Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung, head ofVietnam ASEAN SOM, and his Indian counterpart Preeti Saran, who is also head ofIndia ASEAN SOM, the two sides reached a preliminary consensus on activities tomark the 25th anniversary of the ASEAN-India strategic partnership(1992-2017).
Participants comparednotes on global and regional issues of common concern, stressing that countriesand regions need to strengthen links in multilateral cooperation mechanisms to respondto traditional and non-traditional security challenges.
They pledged to continue fostering coordination between ASEAN and India atregional forums.
As an important partner of ASEAN, along with implementing its “Act East” policy,India is aiming to restructure its relations with regional countries,especially ASEAN, considering it a priority in its foreign policy.
Participants demonstrated determination to build a regional structure based onlaw, dialogue and cooperation, with the active involvement of external partnersand big countries, including India.
They said that ASEAN should play a central role in the process and intra-blocunity and solidarity will be a decisive factor in building a new regionalstructure.
Reviewing ASEAN-India economic and trade links, participants highlighted theimportance of effective implementation of free trade agreements.
They said the two sides should step up maritime cooperation in the Pacific andIndian Oceans, and other fields such as IT, biology, new materials andenvironmental protection.
In his speech, Deputy FM Nguyen Quoc Dung noted that ASEAN and India shouldboost people-to-people exchanges, which serve as a foundation for closer links insecurity-politics, economy and culture.
Regarding global and regional issues, he stressed the importance to maintain peace,stability, security, safety and freedom of navigation and overflight in theEast Sea, saying that this is the responsibility of countries, including India.
Countries need to respect international law, including the 1982 United NationsConvention on the Law of the Sea and diplomatic and legal processes in theregion, including fully implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties inthe East Sea.
ASEAN and China have resumed negotiations of the building of a Code of Conduct(COC) in the East Sea, towards reaching a framework agreement of the documentin 2017, laying a foundation for finalising a COC in the future.-VNA
VNA
