Vietnam helps boost ASEAN's economy amid COVID-19: Malaysian press

Kuala
Lumpur (VNA) - Amid the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Vietnam, as
ASEAN Chair, has managed to formulate a regional comprehensive economic
recovery plan, the New Straits Times of Malaysia reported.
This
was evident from the just-concluded 36th ASEAN Summit in Hanoi on June 26,
where Vietnam demonstrated its mettle as a 25-year-old member of the regional
bloc.
The
newspaper quoted a Vietnamese diplomat as saying that Vietnam had not only
hosted a historic summit during the challenging times, but successfully lived
up to the summit's theme of “Cohesive and Responsive ASEAN”.
"The
summit brought ASEAN members together towards achieving a progressive regional
comprehensive economic recovery plan post-COVID-19.
"Vietnam
shared its precious 25 years experiences as an ASEAN member in containing and
combatting the pandemic with other members, representing a coordinated effort
to ensure global and regional resilience and sustainability," said the official.
The
official pointed out that Vietnam had made significant contributions to ASEAN since
joining the fold on July 28, 1995, in terms of ensuring regional peace and
stability, promoting intra-bloc cooperation and providing more opportunities
for investment and economic growth.
And
over the past decades, Vietnam had emerged as an active and responsible member,
wielding enormous influence upon ASEAN's structure, while contributing to
maintaining unity, peace and security in the region.
Meanwhile,
Professor Tran Viet Thai from the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam said that its
priorities included support for a sound regional security architecture,
according to the article
"This
can be achieved by helping ASEAN to be united, to maintain its centrality in
facing so many packs of wolves, and in handling the pull-and-push of major
powers in the region," said Tran, who is deputy director-general and
director of the Centre for Regional and Foreign Policy Studies, at the academy's
Institute for Foreign Policy and Strategic Studies.
He
added that Vietnam, which occupied an increasingly important geo-political and
geo-strategic location, was considered a bridge between the mainland and
insular Southeast Asia.
The
article said among Vietnam's milestones were in successfully organising the 6th
ASEAN Summit in 1998, just three years after becoming a bloc member.
The
“Hanoi Action Programme” at the summit helped maintain cooperation and
strengthen ASEAN's position during the challenging times of the 1997-98 Asian
financial crisis.
Vietnam
also achieved successes as the Chair of the ASEAN Standing Committee in 2001
and ASEAN Chair in 2010. Both positions helped promote the enforcement culture
and towards a great leap forward in establishing an ASEAN Community by 2015,
thus, enhancing the bloc's international role and position.
Other
achievements are Vietnam's constant support for the expansion of ASEAN's
cooperation with the East Asia high-level cooperation mechanism with the participation
of Russia and the United States, the ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting and for
ASEAN to be represented at the G20 Summit.
Then
there are the "Vision 2020 and implementation plans", "ASEAN
Declaration 2", "ASEAN Charter", "Roadmap for the ASEAN Community
Development (2009-2015)", "Initiative for ASEAN Integration" and
the "ASEAN Master Plan and Connection".
The
article cited Vietnam's former Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan as saying that
his country had actively participated and played a dynamic role in promoting
intra-bloc cooperation as well as ASEAN's cooperation with other partners./.