Vietnamese Prime Minsiter Nguyen Xuan Phuc addresses the plenary session of the online 37th ASEAN Summit on November 12 (Photo: VNA)Phnom Penh (VNA) – ASEAN leaders commended the remarkableleadership of Vietnam as ASEAN Chair in steering the bloc’s priorities in 2020during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a press release issued by theCambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation on lateNovember 13.
The press release, which highlighted theoutcomes of the 37th ASEAN Summit and related events held via videoconferenceby Vietnam from November 12 to 15, noted that Deputy Prime Minister andMinister of Economy and Finance Aun Pornmoniroth, on behalf of PM Hun Sen, headedthe Cambodian delegation at the meetings.
It said that ASEAN leaders expressed commitmentto double ASEAN Community building efforts and the work towards achieving theASEAN Community Vision 2025 and beyond.
Amid unprecedented challenges posed by theCOVID-19 pandemic, they emphasised their strong collective stance to maintainthe ASEAN solidarity and unity to ensure peace, security and sustainabledevelopment in the region.
They agreed on the need to facilitate essentialbusiness travels and people movement among and between ASEAN member statesthrough the adoption of the declaration on an ASEAN travel corridor arrangementframework.
The leaders also announced the establishment ofthe ASEAN Regional Reserve of Medical Supplies for Public Health Emergenciesand encouraged contributions to this reserve from the member states, external partnersand interested donors.
Also at the 37th ASEAN Summit, they reiteratedthe importance of continued upholding inclusive and rules-based multilateraltrading system. In this regard, the leaders announced the completion of thesubstantial negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership(RCEP) and looked forward to the signing of the RCEP on November 15, accordingto the press release.
At the 23rd ASEAN-China Summit, the leadersdiscussed achievements of cooperation over the past 29 years between the twosides and charted future direction of strategic partnership.
ASEAN appreciated China’s contributions to theCOVID-19 ASEAN Response Fund as well as supporting other ASEAN-led initiativesto address this crisis.
During this meeting, Cambodia voicedsatisfaction with the progress of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA)implementation. It urged ongoing discussions on the ACFTA Upgrading Protocol inorder to boost more trade and investment between the bloc and the NortheastAsian nation, the press release noted./.
VNA
