Vietnamese PM urges ASEAN to develop with new thinking, vision
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh speaks at the plenary session of the 44th ASEAN Summit in Vientiane on October 9. (Photo: VNA) |
Vientiane – Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh called on ASEAN member nations to foster unity and take resilience as the foundation to enter a new phase of development with new thinking and momentum, and refreshed outlook, in his keynote speech at the plenary session of the 44th and 45th ASEAN Summits which opened in Vientiane on October 9.
The Vietnamese government leader expressed his gratitude for the support and solidarity shown by ASEAN countries in addressing the aftermath of Typhoon Yagi which affected several nations, including Vietnam. He emphasised that the spirit of unity and mutual assistance, embodied in the principle of "one for all, all for one", remains the core value and source of strength for ASEAN.
In the context of an increasingly volatile world with great challenges, ASEAN remains a global economic bright spot, a bridge for dialogue and cooperation, and a central player in integration and association processes in the region, he said, noting that frameworks related to digital economy, blue economy, and circular economy are gradually shaping new cooperation contents in the region.
Participants at the 44th ASEAN Summit's Plenary Session. (Photo: VNA) |
Chinh stressed that more than ever, ASEAN must use resilience as a foundation for growth, connectivity as a focus for breakthroughs, and innovation as a driving force for leadership. Based on this, he shared key strategic directions for ASEAN's future development.
According to the Vietnamese leader, resilience and strategic autonomy are the foundations for ASEAN to stand firm amidst all fluctuations and overcome any challenges. ASEAN needs to strengthen solidarity and unity in diversity; uphold its norms of conduct; maintain its principled stance on international and regional issues; enhance its resilience; leverage internal resources to maintain internal strategic stability; and respond promptly to external risks.
Chinh said fostering internal connectivity combined with external connectivity, public-private partnerships, and multi-sectoral linkages, with a focus on infrastructure, institutional, and human connectivity is a strategic breakthrough for ASEAN.
Accordingly, it needs to promote investment in high-quality infrastructure projects, especially both "hard" and "soft" strategic infrastructure, encouraging the participation and cooperation of third parties and external partners. The group should also enhance institutional harmonisation to facilitate the trade of goods and services, and investment cooperation. Furthermore, ASEAN must advance human connectivity and people-to-people exchanges, making it easier for citizens, entrepreneurs, and workers to travel.
Innovation is a driving force and motivation for ASEAN to catch up with, keep pace with, and make strides in the region and the world, Chinh said.
He urged ASEAN to strengthen cooperation in developing an innovation ecosystem; establish regional digital cooperation frameworks; and concurrently develop governance criteria for emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence. He noted that ASEAN needs to prioritise human factors as the centre, subject, goal, resource, and impetus of innovation, focusing on strengthening collaboration in education and training high-quality human resources to meet the demands of the new era.
Chinh expressed his belief that Timor-Leste's upcoming ASEAN membership will further strengthen the resilience of ASEAN and the region.
ASEAN must maintain its central, independent, and balanced role; as well as principled behaviour in implementing foreign relations, expanding and diversifying partnerships based on ensuring effectiveness, substance, and mutual benefit, he said.
With a desire to make more contributions to regional cooperation, Vietnam will continue to host the ASEAN Future Forum 2024, the Vietnamese leader said, expressing his hope for other countries’ support for Vietnam to successfully organise this event.
He took the occasion to affirm that Vietnam supports and closely collaborates with Malaysia in its role as ASEAN Chair in 2025.
Speaking at the event, ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn stated that master plans for building ASEAN Community's Post-2025 Vision have entered the final implementation phase, noting a high execution rate across all three pillars, particularly in the Political-Security Community with 99.6%.
ASEAN maintains a positive growth momentum, and continues to be an attractive investment destination, with total foreign direct investment in 2023 hitting 230 billion USD, ranking second after the US.
Frameworks such as the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA), the ASEAN Blue Economy Framework, and the ASEAN Circular Economy Framework serve as a foundation for the bloc to quickly catch up with new development trends, creating momentum for quality and sustainable growth in the future, he said.
Leaders of ASEAN members congratulated Laos – the ASEAN Chair 2024, on positive results achieved in 2024, and highly valued initiatives and priorities implemented across all three pillars of the Community.
They agreed on the necessity to further specify and deepen the content of connectivity and resilience in cooperation strategies for the coming time, towards improving ASEAN's adaptability to current complex changes.
Applauding the new progress in cooperation between ASEAN and its partner countries, participants agreed on the need to maintain ASEAN's strategic balance in implementing external relations and urged partners to respect ASEAN's central role, to work with ASEAN to promote values of dialogue, cooperation, and trust, to uphold the rule of law, and to contribute constructively and responsibly to peace, security, and stability./.
See also
Diplomatic achievements in 2024 set stage for Vietnam's new era: Deputy PM
15:42 | 30/12/2024 Cooperation
Vietnam – Saudi Arabia cooperation: Plenty of room for improvement
10:04 | 29/12/2024 Cooperation
Vietnam, Laos maximise trade, investment cooperation potential
21:28 | 28/12/2024 Cooperation
Vietnam actively contributes to boosting ASEAN – Bangladesh relations
17:50 | 28/12/2024 Cooperation
Party official pays working visit to Cambodia
14:58 | 25/12/2024 Cooperation
Vietnam desires to foster strong partnership with Australia
15:01 | 24/12/2024 Cooperation
See more news
Vietnam, Sweden build extensive, sustainable foundation for future collaboration
14:43 | 24/12/2024 Cooperation
New impetus for Vietnam-France economic, trade cooperation
11:34 | 24/12/2024 Cooperation
FTAs enhance Vietnam-China trade growth
17:02 | 23/12/2024 Cooperation
Vietnam Trade Office in Australia contributes to crucial national goals
16:53 | 23/12/2024 Cooperation
Defence cooperation forms pillar of Vietnam-Thailand enhanced strategic partnership
18:39 | 22/12/2024 Cooperation
Vietnam-France ties reach new height in 2024: Ambassador
10:16 | 22/12/2024 Cooperation
PM's Certificate of Merit presented to Japanese prefecture's governor
14:22 | 21/12/2024 Cooperation
Vietnam and Singapore examine ways to foster Strategic Partnership
12:47 | 21/12/2024 Cooperation
ASEAN-Japan centre honoured for contributions to Vietnam-Japan ties
09:15 | 20/12/2024 Cooperation
Vietnam, China step up development cooperation
08:47 | 19/12/2024 Cooperation
Vietnam Airlines reports record profit, ending four years of losses
17:03 | 30/12/2024 Vietnamese Brands
Lam Dong welcomes 10 millionth tourist in 2024
16:59 | 30/12/2024 Tourism
Hoa Binh named among world’s most beautiful destinations: US magazine
16:55 | 30/12/2024 Tourism
MIC urged to promote digital infrastructure, AI application
16:51 | 30/12/2024 Science - Technology
HCM City eyes sustainable cinema development
16:47 | 30/12/2024 Culture
Multimedia
Glorious tradition of the Vietnam People's Army
08:30 | 22/12/2024 Infographic
Total FDI registered in Vietnam hits 31.4 billion USD in January-November
09:02 | 17/12/2024 Infographic
First 11 months of 2024: Import-export turnover increases 15.4%
10:55 | 16/12/2024 Infographic
11-month agro-forestry-fishery exports exceed yearly target
19:55 | 15/12/2024 Infographic
Hanoi achieves or exceeds 23/24 socio-economic targets for 2024
08:57 | 13/12/2024 Infographic
Organization downsizing must be linked to improvement of staffing quality: PM
15:44 | 29/12/2024 Policy
Amended Electricity Law proves MoIT’s institutional improvement success
17:06 | 23/12/2024 Policy
Ministry proposes extending agricultural land tax exemption through 2030
15:06 | 23/12/2024 Policy
Gov't targets to gradually make English second language at schools by 2030
15:45 | 21/12/2024 Policy
New 300-hectare industrial zone near Long Thanh Airport
15:58 | 30/12/2024 Industry
Vietnam, Canada have opportunity to cooperate in nuclear power: former Canadian Deputy PM
15:30 | 30/12/2024 Energy
Industry sector asked to urgently restart Ninh Thuan nuclear power project
14:35 | 24/12/2024 Energy
Success story behind 500kV Circuit-3 transmission line project
16:43 | 23/12/2024 Energy
Binh Duong creates many incentives for large FDI projects
17:23 | 29/12/2024 Investment
Vietnam increasingly attractive to foreign investors
14:17 | 24/12/2024 Investment
Nghe An Southeast Economic Zone aims to attract 1 billion USD in FDI in 2025
12:33 | 21/12/2024 Investment
Boeing aims to expand investment and cooperation in Vietnam’s defense sector
17:00 | 19/12/2024 Investment
Forecast upbeat for banking industry in 2025
17:29 | 29/12/2024 Finance-Banking
Banking sector: Capital flows with no congestion
15:35 | 25/12/2024 Finance-Banking
Cashless payment requires biometric data updating from January 1, 2025
10:30 | 24/12/2024 Finance-Banking
Year-end surge in property bond issuance amid financial challenges
09:39 | 20/12/2024 Finance-Banking
Centre to apply AI to tropical cyclone forecasting
15:47 | 29/12/2024 Environment
Sowing millions of seeds to green Vietnam’s shared home
15:08 | 24/12/2024 Environment
Dong Thap revives red-crowned crane population
14:29 | 24/12/2024 Environment
Vietnam likely to face continued turbulent weather systems in 2025
14:26 | 19/12/2024 Environment
MIC urged to promote digital infrastructure, AI application
16:51 | 30/12/2024 Science - Technology
5G technology to yield US$1.5 billion revenue for Vietnamese telecom operators
09:56 | 29/12/2024 Science - Technology
Safe nuclear power development essential for clean energy frontier: Japanese expert
10:37 | 28/12/2024 Science - Technology
Innovative startup ecosystem witnesses strong development
09:21 | 25/12/2024 Science - Technology
Stricter fines for traffic violations introduced under new decree
15:38 | 30/12/2024 Society
Hanoi aims to create 169,000 new jobs in 2025
15:56 | 29/12/2024 Society
Planning of Long Thanh International Airport partially adjusted
20:39 | 28/12/2024 Society
Air tickets from HCMC fully booked for Tet holiday
17:31 | 26/12/2024 Society
Vietnam Airlines reports record profit, ending four years of losses
17:03 | 30/12/2024 Vietnamese Brands
Vietnamese farm produce favoured by Malaysians: Trade counsellor
10:58 | 28/12/2024 Vietnamese Brands
PV GAS sets many records, exceeds 2024 production, business plan
16:57 | 25/12/2024 Vietnamese Brands
“PV GAS - Green Energy Journey” marathon: Act for health, act for the environment
06:00 | 25/12/2024 Vietnamese Brands
HCM City eyes sustainable cinema development
16:47 | 30/12/2024 Culture
Cultural Heritage positions national brand in international arena
15:12 | 30/12/2024 Culture
Raising Vietnam’s value through cultural diplomacy
11:17 | 28/12/2024 Culture
“City Tet Fest - Thu Duc 2025” New Year Festival to be held soon
16:33 | 25/12/2024 Culture
Lam Dong welcomes 10 millionth tourist in 2024
16:59 | 30/12/2024 Tourism
Hoa Binh named among world’s most beautiful destinations: US magazine
16:55 | 30/12/2024 Tourism
Tourism potential of islands in southwest Vietnam unlocked
10:44 | 28/12/2024 Tourism
Ninh Binh promotes green tourism development
06:22 | 27/12/2024 Tourism