Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister NguyenXuan Phuc, his spouse and the high-ranking delegation of Vietnam arrived inHanoi on November 15 evening, concluding a trip to Singapore for the 33rd ASEANSummit and related summits at the invitation of his Singaporean counterpart LeeHsien Loong.

The 33rd ASEAN Summit and related meetings fromNovember 13 to 15 were the bloc’s most important events of the year, attractingleaders of the 10 ASEAN countries, along with those of China, Japan, theRepublic of Korea, the US, Russia, India, Australia, Canada (G7 Chair), Chile(G20 Chair) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

During the trip, PM Phuc engaged in a wide rangeof bilateral and multilateral activities. He attended and addressed 18 meetingsand sessions, and had meetings and working sessions with US Vice President MikePence, Chilean President Sebastian Pinera, the Republic of Korea’s PresidentMoon Jae-in, Australian PM Scott Morrison, Malaysian PM Mahathir Mohamad,and Bruneian Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah. 

On the sidelines of these events, the VietnamesePM met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Japanese PM Shinzo Abe, CanadianPM Justin Trudeau, Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, Lao PM Thongloun Sisoulith, andCambodian PM Hun Sen to discuss measures for promoting bilateral ties. He alsoreceived executives of Sembcorp Industries – one of the leading foreigninvestors in Vietnam with nine Vietnam-Singapore industrial parks (VSIPs).

On this occasion, PM Phuc and Singapore’s formerPM and Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong cut the ribbon to open aVietnamese goods week – a special event to promote Vietnamese products inSingapore.

Within the framework of the summits, PM Phucdelivered important speeches, giving various opinions and contributing to manydocuments and agreements issued at the events.

He and other leaders adopted 20 main documentsand 30 thematic ones on different fields, including a joint statement on thenegotiation on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), astatement on the 45th anniversary of ASEAN-Japan friendship and cooperation,the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership Vision 2030, a joint statement onASEAN-Russia strategic partnership, an ASEAN 3 leaders’ statement oncooperation in antimicrobial resistance prevention, and a statement on marineplastic waste fight.

💝[Photos: Vietnamese PM engaged in various activities in Singapore]

Addressing the summits, PM Phuc stressed thatbasing on what have been obtained in 2018, ASEAN’s resilience and innovationmust continue to be promoted in the coming years. ASEAN’s unity must remain thekey factor in both thought and actions for the sake of a steady, resilient andstrongly cohesive ASEAN Community amid the changing global and regionalsituation.

The Vietnamese Government leader urged ASEANmembers to step up cooperation and trust-building dialogue, upholdinternational law, support a rule-based multilateral international system, andenhance cooperation in innovation areas to optimize opportunities in the FourthIndustrial Revolution.

Voicing concern about current challenges tointernational economic development, he said sectional interests – the root ofprotectionism, along with trade conflicts, are posing major challenges, and ifthey are prolonged, the world and the region will suffer from unpredictableconsequences. He called for the continuation of measures to facilitate tradeand investment while minimising risks from trade protectionism.

PM Phuc also said that it’s now the time to makeefforts to finalise the RCEP negotiations. Vietnam is willing to join othercountries in seeking creative and flexible solutions to achieve the commongoals, and building the RCEP into a comprehensive, high-quality andinterest-balanced free trade agreement that takes into account the developmentgap among its members.

He called on ASEAN to take the lead insupporting free trade and regional connectivity.

During discussions, PM Phuc reiterated Vietnam’sviewpoint and stance on regional and international issues of shared concern, stressingthat a sustainably stable and peaceful environment is the prerequisite fordevelopment cooperation, and working for this goal is the common responsibilityof all countries.

In terms of the East Sea issue, he and manycountries shared the view that complex developments in the waters have worriedall relevant sides and could adversely affect regional stability.

The Vietnamese leader underlined ASEAN’s agreedprinciples, including respect for international law and the 1982 UN Conventionon the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in peacefully resolving disputes,self-restraint, no use or threats to use force, no militarisation or other actsthat can complicate the situation, trust enhancement, active building of aneffective and substantive code of conduct (COC) in the East Sea, and seriousand full implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in theEast Sea (DOC).

Most of ASEAN’s partners pledged to join inefforts to create a favourable environment for dialogue, cooperation and trust buildingso as to turn the East Sea into the waters of peace, cooperation anddevelopment.

With his participation in nearly 30 bilateraland multilateral activities as part of the 33rd ASEAN Summits and relatedsummits, PM Phuc continued to deliver a message of a peaceful, stable,resilient and innovative ASEAN that wants to foster comprehensive, substantiveand effective cooperation with partners. His activities highlighted Vietnam asa reformed country with active international integration and as a responsible memberof the region and the world.-VNA