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Mar 09, 2017 / 09:51

Holding Vietnam-China regular deputy foreign ministers’ meeting

Deputy Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung and his Chinese counterpart Liu Zhenmin co-chaired the annual Vietnam-China deputy foreign ministers’ meeting in Nha Trang city in the central province of Khanh Hoa from March 5-8.

 
Deputy Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung (L) and his Chinese counterpart Liu Zhenmin
Deputy Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung (L) and his Chinese counterpart Liu Zhenmin
The annual Vietnam-China deputy foreign ministers’ meeting was organised in Nha Trang city in the central province of Khanh Hoa from March 5-8 to discuss bilateral ties and border issues.
At the meeting, Deputy Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung and his Chinese counterpart Liu Zhenmin reviewed progress made in bilateral relations in the past time.
The two deputy ministers discussed ways to boost cooperation, particularly the implementation of agreements and common conceptions reached by leaders of the two Parties and Governments, and the maintenance of peace, stability at sea.
The two officials agreed to coordinate to make preparations for high-ranking visits between the two countries in 2017, the 10th meeting of the steering committee for Vietnam-China cooperation, and exchanges between the two Parties, Parliaments and the Vietnam Fatherland Front and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, as well as exchanges in important sectors such as diplomacy, defence-security and law enforcement.
The two sides promised to encourage long-term partnerships between their businesses and improve cooperation in the sectors of transport, agriculture, environment-natural resources, and technology.
Vietnam and China will also work closely in responding to climate change, sustainably using shared water resources, including the Mekong River, while increasing people-to-people exchanges and mutually beneficial affiliation between localities. 
The two deputy ministers hailed the role of land border cooperation mechanisms between the two nations in maintaining border security and order, and agreed to continue to enforce legal documents on land border, open new border gates and upgrade existing ones as agreed before, and apply facilitation measures for customs clearance towards stimulating economic growth in border areas. 
Regarding maritime issues, the two sides reached a consensus on respecting agreements and common conceptions of leaders of the two Parties and countries, particularly the Vietnam - China agreement on basic principles guiding the settlement of sea-related issues.
The two sides will make use of existing negotiation and cooperation mechanisms to build trust; persevere in resolving disputes in the East Sea by peaceful measures and promote cooperation in line with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). 
They agreed to fully and effectively implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and work with ASEAN member states in speeding up negotiations to finalise a Code of Conduct (COC) in the waters. 
They also reached agreement on controlling sea disputes without taking any move that can complicate the situation in order to maintain peace and security in the East Sea.