Vietnam became the 7th member of the Association of South East AsianNations (ASEAN) on July 28, 1995, which is a major landmark in thecountry’s regional integration process as well as in the region’s roadto cooperation and linkage.
Ever since itsjoining in the ASEAN, Vietnam has always proved itself as an active andresponsible member which made positive contributions to promotingregional linkage, maintaining peace and stability in the region andstrengthening connectivity within ASEAN towards the establishment of anASEAN Community by the end of 2015.
*A historical decision
The South East Asian region has great geo-political importance and islisted among regions with the most dynamic growth in the world atpresent.
Vietnam’s joining of ASEAN in 1995 isconsidered a significant decision not only for the country itself butalso for the region.
For Vietnam, the decisionhelped establish linkages between the country and the region, allowingit to join hands with the region to build an environment of peace,stability and cooperation that are favourable for Vietnam’s nationalconstruction and defence. The membership of ASEAN also facilitatedVietnam’s endeavours to integrate into the region and the world, helpingit expand cooperation with not only countries in the region but alsopower countries and others in the international community.
ON the regional scale, Vietnam’s accession to the ASEAN in 1995contributed to easing the suspicious and tense environment, bringingregional countries closer towards a grouping of 10 South East Asiannations. Vietnam’s membership created more favourable conditions for theASEAN to strengthen its organisation and central role in promotingpeace, stability and cooperation in the region.
Itcan be said that Vietnam’s membership of the ASEAN has provided thecountry with a peaceful and stable environment to overcome waraftermaths and carry out its Doi Moi (renewal) policy. It also helpedthe country win assistance and investment from regional partners andexpand bilateral and multilateral relations with other ASEAN members aswell as partner countries of ASEAN.
*An active, responsible member
As a member of the ASEAN, Vietnam has made important contributions toall fields of cooperation within the bloc and to the making of theassociation’s future development plans, cooperative orientations andmajor decisions.
Immediately after joining theassociation, Vietnam worked to push for the accession of Laos, Myanmarand Cambodia to the ASEAN, thus realising the idea of an association ofall 10 nations in the region, opening up a new page of solidarity,friendship and cooperation in the region’s history.
The country successfully hosted the sixth ASEAN Summit in December1998, where the Hanoi Plan of Actions was adopted to implement the ASEANVision to 2020, helping the association maintain internal unity andcooperation as well as consolidate its position on the internationalarena amid great impacts by the 1997-1998 world financial crisis.
During Vietnam’s term as Chair of the ASEAN Standing Committee in2000-2001, the Hanoi Declaration on Narrowing Development Gap wasadopted at the 34th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in July 2001,demonstrating efforts to promote regional cooperation and connectivity,thus ensuring a balanced and sustainable development of the association.
Following Singapore’s 2002 initiative on an ASEANEconomic Community and Indonesia’s proposal on the ASEAN SecurityCommunity in 2003, Vietnam put forth the idea of an ASEAN Socio-CultureCommunity, completing the blueprint for the ASEAN Community.
In realising the ASEAN Community, Vietnam has actively joined indeveloping of major orientation documents including the 2004 VientianeDeclaration, the 2008 ASEAN Charter, and the roadmap for building theASEAN Community (2009-2015); as well as in launching ASEAN apparatus.
The country also played an important role in activities towards the formation of the ASEAN Community at the end of 2015.
Vietnam has made substantial contributions to ASEAN’s externalrelations. The country has been performing well its role as coordinatorfor the ASEAN-EU dialogue relations (2012-2015 term), laying thefoundation for the development of the relations in the time ahead.
Vietnam put forth an initiative on and hosted aspecial Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) in June 2014 on ASEAN’s centralrole and strategic orientation for the regional structure in the future.Regional countries said this was a timely idea in the context of strongimpacts from unpredictable complicated changes in regional and globalsituations.
Besides, the country has proposedmany ideas to stimulate ASEAN cooperation in priority fields such associal security, environmental protection, natural disaster control,climate change and migrant labourers’ rights.
AsChair of the ASEAN taskforce for climate change (2014-2015), Vietnam ledthe drafting of the 2014 ASEAN Declaration on Climate Change which wasadopted at the 25th ASEAN Summit in November 2014.
In matters related to regional and world peace and security, Vietnamhas worked hard for a regional consensus on the necessity of peace andstability in the region, at the same time pushed for the implementationof the ASEAN-China Declaration on the Conduct of Parties on the East Sea(DOC) while working towards a Code of Conduct on the East Sea (COC).
At the 24th ASEAN Summit in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar, inMay 2014, Vietnam and other ASEAN member states reiterated theirconsensus and a common voice regarding the Bien Dong (East Sea) issue.ASEAN’s solidarity and unity in this issue is of great importance as itwill serve to maintain the bloc’s consensus in handling othercomplicated matters.
Furthermore, Vietnam has madeimportant contributions to the summit’s documents so that they reflectedkey priorities of the ASEAN and the region, defined the futureorientation of the ASEAN Community following its formation in 2015.
* High priority and strong commitment to realization of ASEAN Community
Upholding the spirit of active and responsible participation in ASEANthroughout the past two decades, Vietnam will continue to give highpriority and strong commitment to the realization of the ASEANCommunity.
Vietnam has actively joined the processof building the ASEAN Community Vision beyond 2015 and blueprints forrealising the vision on all three pillars: Political-Security Community,Economic Community and Socio-Cultural Community.
The country will continue to work for enhanced solidarity and unity inASEAN and the bloc’s central role in maintaining peace, stability,security and cooperation in the region.
As part ofits commitment to promoting the bloc’s external relations, Vietnam doesits best in the role of coordinator for ASEAN-EU relations in the termfrom July 2012 to July 2015, while making thorough preparations with aview to well performing the role as coordinator of ASEAN-India dialoguefor the July 2015-July 2018 tenure.-VNA
Ever since itsjoining in the ASEAN, Vietnam has always proved itself as an active andresponsible member which made positive contributions to promotingregional linkage, maintaining peace and stability in the region andstrengthening connectivity within ASEAN towards the establishment of anASEAN Community by the end of 2015.
*A historical decision
The South East Asian region has great geo-political importance and islisted among regions with the most dynamic growth in the world atpresent.
Vietnam’s joining of ASEAN in 1995 isconsidered a significant decision not only for the country itself butalso for the region.
For Vietnam, the decisionhelped establish linkages between the country and the region, allowingit to join hands with the region to build an environment of peace,stability and cooperation that are favourable for Vietnam’s nationalconstruction and defence. The membership of ASEAN also facilitatedVietnam’s endeavours to integrate into the region and the world, helpingit expand cooperation with not only countries in the region but alsopower countries and others in the international community.
ON the regional scale, Vietnam’s accession to the ASEAN in 1995contributed to easing the suspicious and tense environment, bringingregional countries closer towards a grouping of 10 South East Asiannations. Vietnam’s membership created more favourable conditions for theASEAN to strengthen its organisation and central role in promotingpeace, stability and cooperation in the region.
Itcan be said that Vietnam’s membership of the ASEAN has provided thecountry with a peaceful and stable environment to overcome waraftermaths and carry out its Doi Moi (renewal) policy. It also helpedthe country win assistance and investment from regional partners andexpand bilateral and multilateral relations with other ASEAN members aswell as partner countries of ASEAN.
*An active, responsible member
As a member of the ASEAN, Vietnam has made important contributions toall fields of cooperation within the bloc and to the making of theassociation’s future development plans, cooperative orientations andmajor decisions.
Immediately after joining theassociation, Vietnam worked to push for the accession of Laos, Myanmarand Cambodia to the ASEAN, thus realising the idea of an association ofall 10 nations in the region, opening up a new page of solidarity,friendship and cooperation in the region’s history.
The country successfully hosted the sixth ASEAN Summit in December1998, where the Hanoi Plan of Actions was adopted to implement the ASEANVision to 2020, helping the association maintain internal unity andcooperation as well as consolidate its position on the internationalarena amid great impacts by the 1997-1998 world financial crisis.
During Vietnam’s term as Chair of the ASEAN Standing Committee in2000-2001, the Hanoi Declaration on Narrowing Development Gap wasadopted at the 34th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in July 2001,demonstrating efforts to promote regional cooperation and connectivity,thus ensuring a balanced and sustainable development of the association.
Following Singapore’s 2002 initiative on an ASEANEconomic Community and Indonesia’s proposal on the ASEAN SecurityCommunity in 2003, Vietnam put forth the idea of an ASEAN Socio-CultureCommunity, completing the blueprint for the ASEAN Community.
In realising the ASEAN Community, Vietnam has actively joined indeveloping of major orientation documents including the 2004 VientianeDeclaration, the 2008 ASEAN Charter, and the roadmap for building theASEAN Community (2009-2015); as well as in launching ASEAN apparatus.
The country also played an important role in activities towards the formation of the ASEAN Community at the end of 2015.
Vietnam has made substantial contributions to ASEAN’s externalrelations. The country has been performing well its role as coordinatorfor the ASEAN-EU dialogue relations (2012-2015 term), laying thefoundation for the development of the relations in the time ahead.
Vietnam put forth an initiative on and hosted aspecial Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) in June 2014 on ASEAN’s centralrole and strategic orientation for the regional structure in the future.Regional countries said this was a timely idea in the context of strongimpacts from unpredictable complicated changes in regional and globalsituations.
Besides, the country has proposedmany ideas to stimulate ASEAN cooperation in priority fields such associal security, environmental protection, natural disaster control,climate change and migrant labourers’ rights.
AsChair of the ASEAN taskforce for climate change (2014-2015), Vietnam ledthe drafting of the 2014 ASEAN Declaration on Climate Change which wasadopted at the 25th ASEAN Summit in November 2014.
In matters related to regional and world peace and security, Vietnamhas worked hard for a regional consensus on the necessity of peace andstability in the region, at the same time pushed for the implementationof the ASEAN-China Declaration on the Conduct of Parties on the East Sea(DOC) while working towards a Code of Conduct on the East Sea (COC).
At the 24th ASEAN Summit in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar, inMay 2014, Vietnam and other ASEAN member states reiterated theirconsensus and a common voice regarding the Bien Dong (East Sea) issue.ASEAN’s solidarity and unity in this issue is of great importance as itwill serve to maintain the bloc’s consensus in handling othercomplicated matters.
Furthermore, Vietnam has madeimportant contributions to the summit’s documents so that they reflectedkey priorities of the ASEAN and the region, defined the futureorientation of the ASEAN Community following its formation in 2015.
* High priority and strong commitment to realization of ASEAN Community
Upholding the spirit of active and responsible participation in ASEANthroughout the past two decades, Vietnam will continue to give highpriority and strong commitment to the realization of the ASEANCommunity.
Vietnam has actively joined the processof building the ASEAN Community Vision beyond 2015 and blueprints forrealising the vision on all three pillars: Political-Security Community,Economic Community and Socio-Cultural Community.
The country will continue to work for enhanced solidarity and unity inASEAN and the bloc’s central role in maintaining peace, stability,security and cooperation in the region.
As part ofits commitment to promoting the bloc’s external relations, Vietnam doesits best in the role of coordinator for ASEAN-EU relations in the termfrom July 2012 to July 2015, while making thorough preparations with aview to well performing the role as coordinator of ASEAN-India dialoguefor the July 2015-July 2018 tenure.-VNA
