BEIJING – Viet Nam and China have agreed to promote
bilateral defence co-operation following the conclusion of the 2nd Viet
Nam-China Strategic Defence and Security Dialogue in Beijing yesterday.
The
dialogue was co-chaired by Vietnamese Deputy Defence Minister,
Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh; and Chinese Deputy Chief of General
Staff, Senior Lieutenant-General Ma Xiaotian.
During
the dialogue, the two sides agreed to expand co-operation to new
fields, including the exchange of visits of military delegations, the
establishment of a hot line between the two defence ministries and the
exchange of military students, in both short- and long-term exchanges.
China agreed to share with Viet Nam its experiences in participating in UN peacekeeping operations.
In
the spirit of comradeship and fraternity, Vinh and Ma held open
discussions on issues which still remain controversial in
Sino-Vietnamese relationships.
"Issues
relating to the East Sea should be settled in accordance to
international laws, particularly the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of
the Sea," Vinh said.
He
emphasised the importance of openness and transparency in all forums so
that people of Viet Nam and China as well as the international community
correctly understood the nature of the East Sea issue in the context of
comprehensive friendship between the two countries.
He
expressed Viet Nam's readiness to co-operate for common development
with China on areas of real dispute in line with international laws and
practice. He added that in the long run, Viet Nam would try to seek a
solution which would be acceptable to both sides.
However, he said "pending the demarcation, the two sides must absolutely not use force or even consider using force."
At
the meeting, the two sides briefed each other on the socio-economic and
defence developments in their respective countries and exchanged their
views on global and regional political, defence and security situations.
Following
the dialogue, the Vietnamese delegation led by Vinh would pay a
courtesy visit to Chinese Defence Minister, Senior Lieutenant-General
Liang Guanglie.
The first Sino-Vietnamese Strategic Defence and Security Dialogue was held in Ha Noi in 2010.
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