Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc led a Vietnamese delegation to the 21st ASEAN Plus Three Summit (with China, Japan and the Republic of Korea) in Singapore on November 15.
At the event, the leaders affirmed the role and contributions of ASEAN+3 cooperation to peace, security and prosperity of the region, stressing this is one of the most effective collaboration frameworks of ASEAN.
They applauded strong trade and investment relations between ASEAN and the three partners, with their two-way trade reaching 807.3 billion USD or 31.6 percent of ASEAN’s total trade.
They agreed to step up cooperation in such fields as agro-forestry-fishery, health, social security, climate change, disaster management, prevention of communicable diseases, economic cooperation and connectivity and macro-financial stability; support a free, open and rules-based multilateral trade system; and work hard to conclude negotiations for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
The ASEAN+3 leaders praised the outcomes of the Inter-Korea and US-DPRK Summits and supported efforts towards the complete denuclearisation on the Korean Peninsula as well as the full and serious implementation of related resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.
Regarding the regional and global situation, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc applauded the positive developments on the Korean Peninsula but noted potential risks such as trade conflicts, protectionism, security hotspots, non-traditional security issues, epidemics, environmental pollution and natural disasters.
He highlighted several initiatives to strengthen ASEAN+3 cooperation like building a mechanism warning regional macroeconomic risks to improve the economies’ response readiness and stepping up regional collaboration in early disaster warning.
Concluding the summit, the leaders approved the Statement of the ASEAN+3 Leaders on cooperation in preventing antibiotic resistance bacteria for a better life of people.-VNA
VNA