Posted on 25 Jul 2008
Deputy PM praises ASEAN+3, East Asian Summit
The cooperation process between ASEAN and its three dialogue
partners (ASEAN+3) and the East Asian Summit (EAS) Ministers Informal
Consultations are a firm basis for the regional development, Vietnamese Deputy Prime
Minister Pham Gia Khiem said.
The Deputy PMa€?s remark was echoed by other Foreign Ministers
from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and ASEANa€?s partners (China, Japan,
and the Republic of Korea) at the EAS Ministers Informal Consultations
meeting in Singapore
on July 22.
Deputy PM Khiem, who is also the countrya€?s Foreign Minister,
said EAS member countries should strengthen their cooperation in seeking ways
to overcome the regiona€?s ongoing difficulties relating to energy and food
supply, disaster management, epidemic prevention and environment protection.
At the meeting, the EAS foreign ministers reviewed the
implementation of decisions made at the ASEAN+3 Summit
in November 2007, including the second-time declaration on cooperation in East Asia and the ASEAN+3 working plan from 2007-2017.
They reaffirmed their commitments to fostering the ASEAN+3
cooperation process, considering this a key tool for the long-term target of
building the East Asian Community.
The ministers also praised results of the study on the
establishment of a Comprehensive Economic Partnership in East
Asia and on the establishment of a Economic Research Institute for
ASEAN, which were decided at the third East Asian Summit.
