Vietnam calls for EAS partners’ support in pandemic control, recovery promotion

Vietnam has proposed East Asia Summit (EAS) partners, with their potential and strengths, continue to coordinate closely with ASEAN in coping with COVID-19 pandemic and speed up economic recovery as well as help narrow development gaps and promote the growth of sub-regions, including the Mekong Sub-region, ensuring equal and sustainable development in the region.

Ambassador Vu Ho, acting head of ASEAN SOM Vietnam, made the suggestion during an online meeting of senior officials from countries joining the East Asia Summit (EAS), comprising ASEAN member countries and China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia, New Zealand, India, Russia and the US, on June 8.

He said that in the current context, it is necessary to further promote the strategic role of the EAS in encouraging dialogue and cooperation, strengthening mutual trust and understanding, equality, mutual respect, disagreement management and difference reduction, thus stabilising the relations of world powers, ensuring no harms to the common development of the region as well as peace, security and stability in the region and the world.

The Vietnamese official reaffirmed the principled standpoints of the ASEAN regarding East Sea/South China Sea issues, highlighting the necessity to promote dialogue and cooperation, building trust, uphold international law, exercise restraint, conduct no militarisation activities, settle disputes and differences through peaceful measures, support efforts to continue to fully and effectively implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and finalise a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) in line with international law and the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), thus contributing to making the East Sea a sea of peace, cooperation and development.

Participants at the event highly valued the role of the EAS, with ASEAN playing a central role, and stressed the need to effectively realise the EAS Action Plan for the 2018-2022 period and promptly complete the drafting of an action plan for the 2023-2027 period.

They agreed to coordinate closely in controlling COVID-19 and promoting sustainable recovery. ASEAN welcomes the partners’ support in enhancing their preventive health care capacity and providing COVID-19 vaccines, medicine and medical equipment.

Regarding the regional and international issues of shared concern, including the situation in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and Myanmar, Russia-Ukraine conflicts, and relations among major countries in the region, participants supported the EAS’s strengthening of its role to contribute to ensuring a peaceful, stable and smooth environment to deal with the pandemic and speed up recovery.

Underlining the strategic significance of seas and oceans to each country's development space, the participants highlighted the responsibility of coordinating to ensure peace, stability, security, and safety of navigation and aviation, making the East Sea a sea of peace, friendship and cooperation, refraining from activities that increase tensions and complicate the situation, not conducting militarisation, using and threatening to use force, and settling disputes through peaceful means on the basis of international law, including the UNCLOS 1982. ASEAN and China should fully and effectively implement DOC, and work closely together for the successful building of an effective COC in line with international law, including the UNCLOS 1982, the said.

The EAS partners continued to affirm the role of ASEAN in strengthening dialogue and reconciliation and assisting Myanmar in seeking solutions to stabilise the situation.

Regarding the conflict in Ukraine, the countries emphasised that differences and disagreements should be settled by peaceful means, in compliance with the basic principles of the United Nations Charter, the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC) and international law. All parties need to exercise restraint, resume dialogue efforts to find a long-term solution in line with international law, taking into account the legitimate interests of the parties, while ensuring the safety of civilians in war zones.

Cambodia, Chair of the EAS 2022, announced that it will organise the EAS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in in-person format in August, and the 17th EAS in November in Phnom Penh.