Vietnam and China frankly discussed bilateral relations and issues relating to their territorial borders during two-day talks between Deputy Foreign Minister Ho Xuan Son and his Chinese counterpart Zhang Zhijun which ended in Beijing on Feb. 28.
In an atmosphere of friendship and cooperation, the two sides reached complete unanimity on implementation of agreements to maintain the exchange of high-ranking visits, deepen cooperative ties and seek appropriate solutions to existing issues, thus helping bilateral ties develop in a stable and healthy manner in the interest of the two peoples, of peace, stability and cooperation in the region and the world.
The two sides agreed to closely coordinate preparations for meetings between high-ranking leaders of the two countries. They also agreed to hold the sixth session of the Vietnam-China Bilateral Cooperation Steering Committee in July or August this year.
The two sides agreed to enhance their coordination to conclude work on a list of key cooperative projects in order to effectively carry out the Vietnam-China five-year development scheme on economic commercial cooperation signed in October last year. Participants said they share the determination to raise two-way trade value to 60 billion USD in 2015 alongside improving the trade balance.
The two sides agreed to seriously implement signed agreements to jointly carry out land border management in an effective manner, thus contributing to maintaining safety and order in border areas.
Both sides would make efforts to soon reach an agreement on free movements of vessels in the Bac Luan River mouth and cooperate in tapping tourism potential at the Ban Gioc Waterfall area.
The two sides shared the same view that strict implementation of the common perception of the two countries’ high-ranking leaders as welll as the agreement on basic principles of settling Vietnam-China sea issues is of important significance for the maintenance of peace and stability in the East Sea and for the healthy and steady development of bilateral relations. In this spirit, they agreed to embark on the following tasks:
1. Establish working groups at the department level to negotiate on the delineation of the sea area outside the Bac Bo (Tonkin) Gulf mouth and cooperate in jointly developing this area;
2. Establish working groups at the department level to cooperate in less sensitive sea domains, including sea environment protection, scientific research out at sea, search and rescue activities and mitigation of damage caused by natural calamities; and
3. Launch a hotline between the two foreign ministries to make timely exchanges and discussions for appropriate solutions to arising sea issues.
The Vietnamese delegation was received by Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on Feb. 27.(VNA)
