Bangkok (VNA) – Defence MinisterGen. Ngo Xuan Lich addressed an ASEAN ministers’ meeting with partners onNovember 18, describing trust as the most important for countries to cooperatesubstantively and sincerely in dealing with security challenges in the region.

He delivered a speech at the 6th ASEAN DefenceMinisters’ Meeting Plus, themed “Sustainable Security”, in Bangkok on November18. 

The event saw the participation of defenceofficials of the 10 ASEAN countries and the dialogue partners of Australia,China, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Russia and the US.

Minister Lich said peace, cooperation anddevelopment are still the main trend, in which the regional securitycooperation mechanisms led by ASEAN have proved increasingly effective, helpingto maintain a peaceful and stable environment for economic growth andsustainable development.

Sharing other officials’ concern about therecent regional and global situations, he emphasised that security challengesin the region are growing, from climate change, piracy and cyber security todisputes and disagreements on sovereignty and territory. Notably, many latentsigns have appeared and may become hot spots if they are not dispelled orprevented in a timely manner.

Lich called on countries in the region to upholdresponsibility and together effectively deal with differences and preventissues from becoming conflicts. He also underlined the need to adhere tointernational law; bring into play community responsibilities, especially bysuperpowers; and promote existing bilateral and multilateral cooperationmechanisms in the region.

According to the Vietnamese minister, forregional countries, big or small, to cooperate substantively and sincerely in solvingsecurity challenges in the region, trust is of the top importance.

The building and consolidation of trust requiretime and patience, and trust must be strengthened regularly on the basis of concreteprinciples and actions, Lich said, adding that the trust building process needsthe consistency between words and actions, the transparency in policy makingand implementation, and the harmonisation of each country’s interests withthose of other countries and the region.

Particularly, all actions must be in line withthe principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter, international law andregional commitments, he noted.

The minister said the recent tensions in theEast Sea show that once international law is not respected, security andstability in the region in general, and at sea in particular, will bejeopardized.

Peace in the East Sea is not only the benefitfor the parties directly concerned but also the common benefit for the region andthe world. The settlement of the East Sea issue in a peaceful manner, in thepartnership spirit and for community responsibility is the foundation to turnit into a water body of peace, cooperation and development, he added.

Lich also reiterated Vietnam’s consistent policyof solving the East Sea issue by peaceful means on the basis of internationallaw, and that relevant parties must respect one another’s legitimate and legalinterests stipulated in the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)and steer clear of actions that may complicate the situation or elevatetensions.

Vietnam has been actively joining hands withother ASEAN members and China to build a substantive and effective Code ofConduct (COC) in the East Sea, he noted.

At the meeting, participants discussedtraditional and non-traditional security challenges like terrorism, the reverseeffect of technological development, and cyber security.

They also had in-depth discussions on maritimechallenges, including those relevant to the East Sea, and affirmed theimportance of the maintenance of peace and stability in the waters to regionaland global security.

Many ministers stressed the need to respectinternational law, including the 1982 UNCLOS, and expressed the hope to soonfinalise an effective and substantive COC./.