Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh had bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Singapore, Malaysia and Cambodia on the sidelines of the ASEAN Leaders Meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia on April 24. 

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech
Techo Hun Sen in Jakarta, Indonesia on April 24, 2021

PM Pham assured that Viet Nam always attaches importance and gives high priority to consolidating and enhancing the good neighborliness, traditional friendship and comprehensive cooperation with Cambodia

Expressing his sympathy over difficulties posed by the COVID-19 pandemic in Cambodia, Pham announced an aid of US$500,000, 800 ventilators, two million medical masks and 300,000 N-95 masks to help Cambodia fight the pandemic.

PM Pham asked the Cambodian side to continue assisting the Vietnamese-origin Cambodians, especially in obtaining legal recognition, to help them stabilize their life and integrate into the host society.

Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen is one of the first two foreign
leaders to congratulate newly-elected Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh over the phone.
Photo: VGP

Hun Sen congratulated Viet Nam on successful fulfillment of its role as ASEAN Chair in 2020 and praised the country’s achievement in COVID-19 containment and socio-economic development.

He expressed thanks for Viet Nam’s timely and valuable support and assistance to Cambodia’s fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The two leaders were glad at the positive developments of the bilateral ties despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, especially the two-way trade reached US$2.69 billion in the first quarter this year.

They pledged to coordinate in realizing the two countries’ high-level agreements, inform each other about COVID-19 containment measures, work together to control the shared border line amid swift evolution of the pandemic, and continue assistance for the Vietnamese community in Cambodia and the Cambodian community in Viet Nam.

The two PMs spoke highly of the two countries’ exchange of two legal documents recognizing the completion of 84 percent of the land border demarcation and landmark planting workload, and agreed to continue negotiations on the remaining workload in the time to come.

The sides agreed to work with other ASEAN member States to foster negotiations on the Code of Conduct in the East Sea in line with international law and the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (left) meets with Singaporean Prime Minister
Lee Hsien Loong, Jakarta, Indonesia, April 24, 2021. Photo: VGP

PM Pham reassured PM Lee that Viet Nam attaches importance to the strategic partnership with Singapore.

Pham also asked Singapore to continue short- and long-term scholarships for Viet Nam, including Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy scholarships.

For his part, Lee expressed his wish to build close ties with  Pham in order to further broaden and deepen the Viet Nam-Singapore strategic partnership.

He praised Viet Nam’s achievements in COVID-19 containment and socio-economic development, expressing thanks to Viet Nam for having creating favorable conditions for Singaporean investors in Viet Nam.

Present at the meeting include Vietnamese Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son
and Minister-Chairman of the Government Office Tran Van Son. Photo: VGP

The two PMs pledged to continue stepping up good coordination at regional and international forums, especially ASEAN and APEC.

They vowed to work together in accelerating ratification and implementation of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

The two leaders also agreed to coordinate in maintaining ASEAN’s shared positions on the East Sea, back the bloc’s centrality in settling the Myanmar issue in order to contribute to ensuring peace, stability, and cooperation in the region as well as the image and position of ASEAN.

Asking both sides to boost the exchange of delegations, PM Pham welcomed the Singaporean Foreign Minister’s upcoming visit to Viet Nam to attend the ASEM High-level Policy Dialogue scheduled to take place in Ha Noi next June.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (right) and Malaysian Prime Minister
Muhyiddin Yassin in Jakarta, Indonesia on April 24, 2021. Photo: VGP

At his meeting with Malaysian PM Muhyiddin Yassin, PM Pham wished to reinforce ties with Malaysia in both bilateral and multilateral aspects.

Yassin expressed his belief that with achievements in pandemic control, socio-economic stability and success in external relations, Viet Nam will obtain further successes in socio-economic development, thus improving its stature in the region and the world.

The two PMs promised to further expand bilateral cooperation in various fields in the near future, including maintaining all-level exchanges and contacts, both online and offline. 

They also agreed to hold the sixth meeting of the Viet Nam – Malaysia Inter-Committee for Economic and Scientific-Technological Cooperation, and the fourth meeting of the Trade Joint Committee, towards raising two-way trade to US$15 billion.

The two leaders committed to continue mutual support within the ASEAN framework and at regional and global forums, continue upholding ASEAN’s role in search for solutions to the Myanmar issue.

They also agreed to coordinate in maintaining ASEAN’s shared positions and voice in the East Sea issue, seriously implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), and soon reaching a practical and effective Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) in line with international law and the 1982 UNCLOS.

On the sidelines of the ASEAN Leaders’ Meeting, heads of delegations of Laos, Thailand, the Philippines and Myanmar also paid courtesy calls on PM Pham Minh Chinh./.