Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh Minh speaks at the meeting. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – The ASEAN 2020 NationalCommittee convened its fifth meeting in Hanoi on May 15, focusing onpreparations for the upcoming 36th ASEAN Summit.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham BinhMinh, who is chairman of the committee, said the COVID-19 pandemic has largelyimpacted ASEAN in general and Vietnam’s ASEAN Chairmanship 2020 in particular.
He, however, described these challenges asopportunities for Vietnam to promote its role as ASEAN Chair 2020.
Vietnam has proactively and promptly organised manyvideo conferences within ASEAN and between the grouping and its partnersregarding the fight against the epidemic, and raised initiatives in line withthe theme of “Cohesive and responsive” of the ASEAN Year 2020, he said.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Quoc Dung, who is general secretary of the committee, reviewedthe work that has been done so far this year, especially the adjustments andsupplements of Vietnam’s activities and initiatives within the framework of theASEAN Chairmanship Year under the impacts of COVID-19.
Regarding the implementation of the results of theSpecial ASEAN Summit and Special ASEAN 3 Summit on COVID-19, as well asPrime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc’s initiatives presented at the events, Dungsaid relevant ministries and agencies are speeding up the building of implementationdocuments and measures that will be sent to other ASEAN member countries forfeedback collection and submitted to the ASEAN Coordinating Council (ACC).
Representatives of many ministries and agencies alsoproposed scenarios for activities to be held in the time ahead, with attentionpaid to ensuring security, safety and disease prevention and control fordelegates.
Minh asked the Ministries of Foreign Affairs; Industryand Trade; and Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs to play a more active roleas agencies in charge of the pillars of politics-security, economyand culture-society.
Greater efforts should be made to push ahead with therealisation of the results reaped at the two above-mentioned summits, he said.
Minh assigned the sub-committees and the ASEAN 2020Secretariat to continue with preparations for the 36th ASEAN Summit,and put forth suitable plans, programmes and scenarios.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) consists of 10 member states - Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam./.
VNA
