Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN. (Photo: VNA)Speaking at the launching event, Ambassador Dang DinhQuy, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, thanked participatingcountries for supporting the initiative. Vietnam is honoured to be among 12founders of the group of friends and committed to observing and promoting theUNCLOS, UN Charter and international law, he said.
He expected the group will contribute to enhancingunderstanding of the UNCLOS, sharing good practices in applying the conventionin the delimitation of maritime boundaries, peaceful settlement of disputes,and ocean management, thereby supporting the implementation of the UNCLOS andmeeting the international community’ common interests.
Soares, for his part, urged all signatories to the UNCLOSto strengthen capacity building to comply with the convention and activelyparticipate in forums about maritime issues.
The event provides an opportunity for UN member states toincrease awareness of the importance of sea laws in a way that is beneficial tonot only themselves but also the international community, Quy told Vietnam NewsAgency correspondents after the event.
It is also a forum for heightening the rule of law spirit in solving differences in international relations, he said, adding thatit is even more meaningful to Vietnam as it is the first Group of Friendsinitiated and advocated by the country.
The UN Group of Friends is an open and informal organisationgathering countries sharing same concerns over a certain issue. There are about90 UN Groups of Friends in various areas at the UN.
Members of the Group of Friends on the UNCLOS come fromall over the world, comprising five permanent UN Security Council member statesand many nations in Asia Pacific, such as Indonesia, the Philippines, Brunei,Thailand, Japan, the Republic of Korea, India, Bangladesh, Australia, and NewZealand./.
VNA
