The first session of the Vietnam-China Land Border Joint Committee was held in Beijing from March 14-18.

At the session, the two sides reviewed their activities after the completion of the land border demarcation and marker planting along the common borderline. They fulfilled tasks as scheduled to put documents on the Vietnam-China land border into practice.

Both sides discussed orientations to implement future border management and agreed on important issues on operational mechanisms for border representatives, the construction of projects on border rivers and streams, border gate management, and speeding up negotiations for an early signing of an agreement on free water traffic in the Bac Luan river mouth area and a cooperative agreement on tapping into tourism potential in the Ban Gioc waterfall area.

Both countries also agreed to work closely in maintaining security at border areas, to prevent illegal migration, trafficking of women and children, drug smuggling and transnational crimes.

They agreed to increase education and campaigns targeting people in border areas to encourage respect for the common borderline, as well as to exchange information and cooperation in environmental protection and use of water resources.

The session took place in an atmosphere of friendship and frankness, contributing to developing the Vietnam-China land border into a borderline of peace, friendship, cooperation and development.

Both sides agreed to convene the second session of the Committee in Hanoi in the fourth quarter of this year./.