Vietnam has just said it has proposed to China to “find a fundamental and long-term solution” to the East Sea (South China Sea) issue during a meeting between Vietnam’s new Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son and Chinese State Councilor cum Foreign Minister Wang Yi on June 8. However, this content was completely not mentioned in the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s report at the meeting.
“Vietnam proposes that together with China continue to seriously implement high-level common sense, comply with international law, especially UNCLOS 1982 [United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea], and promote the role of negotiation mechanisms to seek a basic and long-term solution to the East Sea issue,” Tuoi Tre newspaper reported on the content of the meeting between the two foreign ministers within the framework of the Special Meeting of Foreign Ministers of ASEAN – China and the Mekong – Lancang Cooperation Foreign Ministers Meeting in Chongqing, China.
Accordingly, the two Vietnamese and Chinese ministers also agreed to maintain exchanges and cooperation at multilateral forums to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea, and together with ASEAN countries to soon reach a Code of Conduct in the sea (COC). All of the above content and issues of bilateral and international relations and areas of mutual concern were “extensively exchanged” and “in an atmosphere of friendship and sincerity,” the ministry was quoted by the press.
Meanwhile, the official bulletin of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China when the information about the meeting did not mention the above contents at all, but mainly talked about promoting Sino-Vietnamese relations.
China is willing to work with Vietnam to continue building the traditional friendship, strengthen mutual strategic trust, and deepen substantive cooperation in the direction that the senior leaders of the two parties and countries have determined. “It is the fundamental attribute and core goal of the two-party and two-country relationship to uphold the leadership of the Communist Party, promote the cause of socialism.”
For his part, Mr. Bui Thanh Son said “Vietnam always considers the development of the two-Party and two-country relations as a solid choice and its diplomatic priority” and China has had many contacts with Vietnam. than any other country since the 13th Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam. “This fully demonstrates the closeness and strategy of the two countries,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s website said.
In addition to the South China Sea issue, Vietnamese media said that Mr. Bui Thanh Son also asked China to create favorable conditions for Vietnam’s agricultural products and food exports to China, effectively deploying China’s aid to Vietnam and soon complete the cooperation projects that still have problems.
Meanwhile, the Chinese side said that the trade turnover between China and Vietnam in the first four months of the year exceeded $70 billion, with a year-on-year growth rate of over 40%, “fully demonstrating the potential for cooperation between Vietnam and China reflects the high level of friendly neighborliness between the two countries. China added that it is “willing to expand port cooperation with Vietnam and import more agricultural products from Vietnam” but that the two sides need to “fully exploit their strengths” and “promote progress in building Belt and Road construction and cross-border economic cooperation zones.”
Foreign Minister Wang Yi added that China is willing to strengthen cooperation with Vietnam in the fight against COVID-19, and supports Chinese pharmaceutical enterprises to cooperate with Vietnam in research and development and production of vaccines.
He suggested the two sides create favorable conditions for citizens of the two countries to get vaccinated in each other’s countries and strengthen joint prevention and control work at the border against the pandemic.
Thoibao.de (Translated)
