Opening the event, Defence Minister the Republic of Korea (RoK) Song Young-moo said 90 percent of global trade is conducted using shipping routes, which shows that all countries around the world are closely connected via oceans. About 40 percent of the global population lives in Asia-Pacific, which makes up 52 percent and 47 percent of the world’s GDP and trade, respectively. Regional countries need to be responsible for ensuring navigation freedom in the region – the main centre of the global economy. However, if dispute causes like territorial waters disputes, crimes, terrorism, and marine pollution are not resolved, it will be hard to ensure navigation freedom, he noted.The minister added his country had proposed organising a forum on peace and marine order in the Northeast Asian sea areas with the participation of the navies of such countries as the RoK, the US, Japan, China, and Russia. It could be expanded to not only the entire East Asia but also Western Asia.At the forum, the Vietnamese officer highly valued the RoK’s initiative and shared the view that cooperation mechanisms like the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting and ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus are critical to addressing security challenges in the region, especially non-traditional security issues.Countries need to ensure safety, security, and freedom of navigation and aviation on the basis on international law, ensure international order with respect for law, not use or threaten to use force in solving international affairs.Lt Gen. Nguyen Duc Hai stressed that growing non-traditional challenges like cyber attacks have… [Read full story]
Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Le Cong Phung attended the Global Faith Forum at the invitation of Pastor Bob Roberts, head of the Northwood Church in Southlake, Texas, from Nov. 11-14. Themed on the necessary harmony among religions, as well as between believers and non-believers, the forum brought together many representatives from major religions, including Muslim, Judaism, Protestantism and Christianity, and the White House. Addressing the forum, Pastor Roberts said Vietnam respects religious freedom and is a multi-religious nation with more than 80 percent of its population being religious believers. He said the presence of the Vietnamese Ambassador in the…... [read more]
At the invitation of the Singaporean Minister of Trade and Industry, a delegation of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) led by Deputy Director Hoang Tuan Anh, attended the 10th ASEAN tourism ministerial meeting and the 6th ASEAN tourism ministerial meeting China, the RoK, and Japan in Singapore from Jan.29-30. ATF 2007, under the theme "ASEAN: Embracing Our Past & Together Shaping Our Future", recognized the great contribution of tourism to each country's economy as well as the ASEAN region. Participants exchanged ideas, reviewed industry developments and looked to formulate specific recommendations to further accelerate the growth of ASEAN…... [read more]
Attending the four day event are a delegation from the Supreme People's Court led by Deputy Chief Judge Tong Anh Hao, and a delegation from the Ministry of Justice led by Deputy Minister Nguyen Khanh Ngoc. Speaking at the plenary session, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said that in the 21st century, the rule of law is becoming increasingly complex and fragmented, while also having become more comprehensive. To maintain the operation of the legal system, governments should develop new law structures, he added. The Russian leader also reminded international lawyers about the Internet, emphasising that in the context of…... [read more]
Present at the forum were Italian Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi, ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan, and Vice-President of the European Commission (EC) Antonio Tajani, along with representatives from 10 ASEAN member nations and from international economic and financial organizations such as the World Bank (WB), the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and development (OECD). In his speech, Italian FM Terzi said the close relationship between Italy and ASEAN nations has greatly contributed to Italy’s prosperity. Italy’s export earnings to the ASEAN market have posted rapid growth to approximately US$6 billion in recent years. However, trade…... [read more]
Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Nguyen Minh Quang is attending the sixth World Water Forum that opened on March 12 in France’s southern city of Marseille. Around 20,000 delegates from around 140 countries and territories will focus their discussion on the implementation of international, regional and local legal principles on water within the international community, the signing of new documents to raise the quality of managing water on and under the ground and the development and improvement of international cooperative mechanisms. The establishment of sustainable financial mechanisms for regional organisations, the training of managers and policymakers, the compilation of…... [read more]
