Hanoi (VNA)– Nguyen Quoc Dung, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and head of Vietnam’sASEAN Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM), attended the 28th ASEAN-NewZealand Dialogue held virtually on March 23.

In his remarks, Dung emphasisedthe significance of maritime cooperation to security and economic developmentin each country, as well as the daily lives of regional residents.

He suggested ASEANand New Zealand step up their coordination within the frameworks of the EastAsia Summit (EAS), the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the ASEAN Defence Ministers’Meeting Plus (ADMM+) and the Expanded ASEAN Maritime Forum (EAMF).

The move aims topromote dialogue, cooperation, trust building, and respect for internationallaw, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (1982UNCLOS), he explained.

Dung also called forsupport towards efforts in building and promoting codes of conduct such as theDeclaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and the Code ofConduct in the East Sea (COC).

The two sides should strengthensustainable cooperation and join hands in consolidating and improving theoperational efficiency of maritime cooperation mechanisms and frameworks in theregion, he said.

The countries also needto enhance dialogue, collaboration, trust building and law respect, and ensurean environment of peace, security and stability, in order to facilitaterecovery and sustainable growth, Dung stressed.

AlisonMann, head of New Zealand’s ASEAN SOM, said New Zealand attachesimportance to the relations with the ten-member grouping, and commits to furtherworking as ASEAN’s active partner in frameworks, dialogues and cooperation mechanismsled by ASEAN in the region.

Thetwo sides agreed to closely coordinate in pushing ahead with the implementationof the Joint ASEAN-New Zealand Leaders’ Vision Statement approved last Novemberso as to deepen their strategic partnership.

Withthe 2021-2025 action plan, the two sides will boost cooperation in suchpriority areas as economy, trade, investment, the fight against terrorism and transnationalcrime, education, environmental protection, climate change, natural disaster management,sub-regional development, and narrowing development gaps.

Thecountries consented to continue their close coordination in order to contributeto maintaining regional peace, security and stability, including security andsafety in the East Sea./.