(VOVWORLD) -Vietnam’s Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son on Friday affirmed ASEAN's principled stance on the East Sea and emphasized the importance of ensuring peace, security, stability, safety, freedom of navigation and overflight in the East Sea.
 Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son attends the 29th ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on August 5. (Photo:baoquocte.vn) |
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Addressing the 29th ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) on Friday, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, FM Son called on countries to build East Sea into a sea of peace, stability and cooperation.
He said ASEAN and China continue to make efforts to fully and effectively implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and soon achieve an effective, efficient and appropriate Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) in accordance with international law, including UNCLOS 1982.
The meeting adopted the ARF Declarations on promoting peace and stability through confidence-building measures and preventive diplomacy, maintaining a nuclear weapon-free Southeast Asia region, and the ARF Framework Document on inclusive processes for preventive diplomacy and conflict resolution. The ARF Forum has closed the working week of ASEAN Foreign Ministers and partners' meeting.
Established in 1994, the ARF has become an important platform for security dialogue in the Indo-Pacific.
Later on Friday, Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son had meetings with Foreign Ministers of the US, the Republic of Korea, Australia and Timo Leste.