(VOV) -Vietnam and the US will continue promoting visit exchanges to strengthen bilateral relations in the future, said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Le Hai Binh.
Binh made the affirmation in response to a reporter’s query related to the ongoing visit by Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin Dempsey and the upcoming visit to Vietnam by US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel and their impact on bilateral defence cooperation.
Sen. Lt. Gen. Deputy Defence Minister Do Ba Ty and Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin Dempsey reviewing the guard of honour in Hanoi
The spokesperson noted that delegation exchange and other activities are specific steps to strengthen Vietnam-US comprehensive partnership established in July 2013.
Regarding the statement of a US State Department official quoted by Reuters as saying that the US will monitor the East Sea to see whether “de-escalatory steps” are being taken, Binh emphasised that Vietnam welcomes any positive and constructive contributions of other countries inside and outside the region to maintaining peace, stability, safety and security of navigation and aviation in the East Sea.
At the recent 47th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM-47) and related meetings in Myanmar, regional ministers expressed deep concern about the East Sea tension and stressed the need to prevent any similar acts.
The delegates asked concerned parties to strictly observe international law, especially the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 2002 ASEAN-China Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC).
It is also essential to boost negotiations towards an early conclusion of a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC), they suggested.
The spokesperson noted that ASEAN and its partners will actively follow the outcomes reached at AMM 47 and related meetings.
Đăng ký: VietNam News
