Foreign ministers of ASEAN and China will hold a special meeting to speed up progress on a code of conduct in the East Sea. Indonesia's Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa told reporters on Thursday that the meeting was proposed by China and all ASEAN members have agreed to participate.

Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Marty Natalegawa (left) and Secretary-General of Asean Le Luong Minh. (Photo:xinhua)

The same day, Vietnam’s Deputy Foreign Minister Pham Quang Vinh told the press following the ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting that in addition to ASEAN’s operations and priorities for the year, East Sea issues were high on the agenda. ASEAN foreign ministers reiterated their viewpoints and ASEAN's basic principles, which include ensuring peace and stability in the East Sea, settling disputes by peaceful means with respect to international laws, particularly the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, and fully implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea towards building a Code of Conduct of Parties in the East Sea. A press communique on East Sea issues followed foreign ministers’ series of meetings. 

Regarding Vietnam, Vinh said Vietnam agrees and will work closely with Brunei, the chairman, and Thailand, the coordinator, as well as other ASEAN members, to enhance the bloc’s solidarity and key role to achieve its targets and follow its basic principles on East Sea issues, particularly the ASEAN 6-point principle which includes ensuring peace, stability, and maritime safety in the East Sea and resolving disputes by peaceful means.