For a Peaceful, Secure, and Self-Reliant ASEAN

 

Recently, the Vientiane Joint Declaration of the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting: "Together for Peace, Security, and Resilience" was adopted at the 18th ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting to proactively and flexibly respond to security challenges and foster trust-building with partners.

General Phan Van Giang, Politburo member, Vice Secretary of the Central Military Commission, and Minister of National Defense led the high-ranking delegation of the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense to attend the 18th ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting (ADMM-18), the 11th ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting Plus (ADMM+), as well as the China-ASEAN Defense Ministers' Informal Meeting and the ASEAN-US Defense Ministers’ Informal Meeting in Vientiane, Laos.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense of Laos, General Chansamone Chanyalath, who chaired the 18th ADMM, emphasized that in the context of the current complex global situation, peace and security are the foundations for economic development and social progress. The ADMM-18 aims to enhance and promote international cooperation, addressing current regional challenges for a "peaceful, prosperous, and resilient" ASEAN.

 

The meeting adopted the Vientiane Joint Declaration of the ADMM "Together for Peace, Security, and Resilience". The joint declaration acknowledges the complexities arising from geopolitical and geostrategic factors that affect regional and global peace and stability. Traditional and non-traditional security issues, including the impacts of climate change, energy insecurity, and food shortages, as well as changes in culture and society, the decline in global economic growth, and the advancement of information and communication technology, continue to pose challenges to peace, stability, and security both within and outside the region.

A delegation from the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense, led by Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army, Lieutenant General Pham Truong Son, attended the 9th Singapore Airshow at Changi Exhibition Centre from February 20-25, 2024. Photo: VNA

The joint declaration underscores the importance of the ADMM and ADMM+ in the regional security architecture, providing a framework for substantive strategic dialogue and defense cooperation with ASEAN at its center. The joint declaration reaffirms ASEAN as an outward-looking community that values engagement and cooperation with ASEAN's dialogue partners and friends through ASEAN-led mechanisms to promote trust and confidence, while maintaining and enhancing ASEAN's centrality and solidarity, contributing to the common goal of maintaining peace and security and promoting self-reliance within and beyond the region.

 

The joint declaration reaffirms the adherence to the fundamental principles and purposes enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, the ASEAN Charter, and the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC) in enhancing ASEAN's centrality and solidarity and maintaining a rules-based regional architecture in accordance with international law for the benefit of the people, as well as the centrality of ASEAN as a key driver in enhancing defense, security, and confidence-building measures with ASEAN's partners; reaffirms the importance of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) as a guide for ASEAN in cooperating with external partners.

The joint declaration supports the full implementation of the Five-Point Consensus on Myanmar and reiterates Myanmar's commitment to seeking a peaceful and lasting solution to the current situation.

 

The joint declaration reiterates the commitment to peaceful and constructive cooperation by all parties to make the East Sea a sea of peace, stability, and prosperity through the full and effective implementation of the Declaration of the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and the early conclusion of an effective and substantive Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) in accordance with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)./.

• Story:  VNP
• Photos: VNA
• Translated by Hong Hanh
• Designed by Dang Tien