Vietnamese officials active at 52nd ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh joined other ASEAN foreign ministers in meeting with representatives of the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) in Bangkok on July 30.

 Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh (front row, third from left) at the meeting (Photo: VNA)
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh (front row, third from left) at the meeting (Photo: VNA)

The meeting forms part of the ongoing 52nd ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and related meetings.

They heard reports on AICHR’s past operations and suggested directions for its future activities, particularly the building of AICHR’s 2020 Priority Programmes and Work Plan for 2021 – 2025.

Deputy PM Minh then met with Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi, during which both agreed to boost the Vietnam – Indonesia strategic partnership in all fields, including maritime cooperation.

Discussing common concerns related to regional and international issues, they affirmed the importance of reinforcing solidarity in ASEAN as well as the bloc’s central role.

The boosting of effective collaboration within ASEAN and between the bloc and its partners is also necessary, they said.

Regarding the East Sea issue, the sides stated that parties involved need to comply with international law, particularly the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to maintain peace and stability, and reinforce mutual trust among countries.

Also on July 30, Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung held a meeting with his Indian counterpart, Vijay Thakur Singh, to discuss measures to develop bilateral ties as well as India’s cooperation with the Mekong sub-region.