According to VNA, on the morning of October 10, in Vientiane, Laos, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attended the ASEAN-China Summit and the ASEAN-Korea Summit.
Upgrading the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement
At the 27th ASEAN-China Summit, leaders welcomed the fact that ASEAN and China have basically completed negotiations to upgrade the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA) to version 3.0, creating conditions to enhance economic, trade and investment cooperation and consolidate the regional supply chain.
Speaking at the 27th ASEAN-China Summit, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized that ASEAN and China are increasingly affirming their roles as important driving forces, dynamic development centers, leading growth and development in the region and the world.
Orienting the future of relations, the Prime Minister suggested that ASEAN and China need to enhance self-reliance, promote close, comprehensive and inclusive ties and connections more than ever, thereby promoting strategic connections, especially strategic infrastructure, transport infrastructure, promoting new growth drivers, connecting trade smoothly, connecting more closely with the Belt and Road Initiative, accelerating the progress of market opening, upgrading border gate infrastructure, especially soft connections on smart customs, while making good use of scientific and technological achievements, promoting cooperation in developing digital economy and green economy.
Emphasizing the need to promote a vision of peace and security, shoulder shared responsibility for peace, and preserve a peaceful environment for cooperation and development, the Prime Minister hoped that ASEAN and China would connect their positions and viewpoints, further consolidate and enhance political trust, closely coordinate, make active and responsible contributions to peace, security and stability, enhance dialogue, peacefully resolve disputes in the region, including the East Sea, turn the East Sea into a sea of peace, stability, cooperation and long-term sustainable development, and soon conclude negotiations on a substantive and effective COC in accordance with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Establishing ASEAN-Korea Comprehensive Strategic Partnership
The 25th ASEAN-Korea Summit unanimously adopted the Joint Statement establishing the ASEAN-Korea Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, marking a new development milestone on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the establishment of relations (1989 - 2024).
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh expressed his delight at the official establishment of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between ASEAN and the Republic of Korea on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the relationship. Accordingly, the Prime Minister proposed three orientations for implementing the ASEAN-RoK relationship commensurate with the new level.
First of all, contribute more responsibly to peace, security, stability and prosperity in the region.
The Prime Minister welcomed the Republic of Korea's continued active support for ASEAN's common stance on the East Sea as well as efforts to build the East Sea into a sea of peace, stability, cooperation and sustainable development.
ASEAN is ready to coordinate and encourage relevant parties to increase dialogue, towards long-term peace and stability on a nuclear-free Korean peninsula.
Second, promote economic cooperation more strongly, focusing on connecting economies, cultural cooperation, tourism, education and training. In particular, trade and investment cooperation needs to develop in a more balanced and sustainable direction, making better use of the ASEAN-Korea Free Trade Agreement (AKFTA) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
Third, take more drastic actions to promote inclusive, comprehensive growth and sustainable development, especially for new growth drivers.
Accordingly, it is necessary to jointly open up new horizons of strategic cooperation such as innovation, high technology, renewable energy, digital transformation, green transformation, climate change response, semiconductors and artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, Internet of Things, etc. At the same time, continue to promote the Mekong - Korea Partnership, actively contribute to sub-regional development efforts, ensure inclusive growth, narrow the gap and develop equally and sustainably in the region.
