The Australian Parliament always attaches importance to developing its cooperation with the Vietnamese National Assembly (NA), an Australian official has said.

Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives, Bronwyn Bishop, made the statement during a reception for Vietnamese Ambassador to Australia Luong Thanh Nghi on May 28.

She said she hopes that the two legislative will play a more active role in further strengthening the two countries’ relations.

Bishop also highly appreciated the contributions of the Vietnamese community living in Australia to the host country’s development, as well as promoting the two countries’ ties.

For his part, Ambassador Nghi briefed the host on the Vietnamese NA’s recent activities, including last year’s constitution amendment. He also conveyed NA Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung’s invitation to the speaker to attend the 132 nd IPU Assembly scheduled to be held in Vietnam in March 2015.

Speaking highly of the positive development in the bilateral ties and multilateral cooperation in the region, the ambassador thanked Australia for its increasing development assistance to Vietnam in recent years.

He also informed the speaker of recent developments related to China’s illegal act of stationing the Haiyang Shiyou-981 oil rig in Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.
This seriously violates Vietnam’s sovereign right and jurisdiction as well as international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), and threatens peace, stability, security and navigation safety and freedom in the region and the world, Nghi stressed.

In her reply to Nghi, Bishop expressed her concern and shared the Australian Government’s position on the issue. She also underlined the importance of respecting international law and ensuring peace, stability and security in the region.-VNA