Minister of Defence Phung Quang Thanh told reporters that all participants in a gathering of defense officials agreed they must maintain a peaceful and stable environment in the East Sea.

VietNamNet Bridge – Minister of Defence Phung Quang Thanh told reporters that all participants in an informal gathering of defense officials, including Americans and Chinese, agreed they must maintain a peaceful and stable environment in the South China Sea – the body of water Vietnamese call the ‘East Sea.’

Minister of Defence Phung Quang Thanh

Speaking to reporters on June 8, Thanh shared his high evaluation of the 9^th Shangri-la dialogue on security in Asia-Pacific, convened in Singapore a few days earlier. It attracted senior officials from eighteen nations for discussion of issues related to security in Asia and the Pacific, he explained. “Clearly, nations with economic and security interests in our region need to sit down together, aim for a common awareness of problems, and put forward proposals for cooperation. It’s cooperation at a high level, engaging defense ministries from the whole Asia-Pacific region.”

Thanh explained that maritime security in the region is a fundamental interest of all Asia-Pacific countries. Every day 150 or 200 large ships are transiting the ASEAN region, carrying 75 to 80 percent of the region’s cargoes.

Dialogue among defense officials, Thanh stressed, “will help us all avoid misunderstanding and missteps.”

“We pressed the notion of broader military and defense cooperation between the ten ASEAN countries and their eight dialogue partners, that is, China, the US, Russia, India, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand,” the minister continued. “It is good to get these nations’ defense ministers engaged in discussion of means to maintain marine security, peace and stablility in our region, to fight pirates and smugglers and to conduct rescue activities.”

How does the East Sea dispute affect overall Asia-Pacific security?

If there are armed clashes in the East Sea, all countries in the region, perhaps even in the whole world, will be affected. It would be a disaster for the region. That’s why it is in the interest of each and every nation to ensure a peaceful and stable environment for mutual development. All countries must keep calm, exercise restraint and deal with the dispute at the strategic level, through peaceful negotiation, referring to the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), international law and the UN Law of the Sea Convention.

Do the big countries and the ASEAN countries view security in the East Sea in the same way?

The US, China and other big countries agree that a peaceful and stable environment must be maintained in the East Sea. The US stated that it does not take sides in the dispute but it will ensure maritime security, the security of activities in international waters, and protect the right of American and other nations’ companies to conduct their business legally with countries in the region.

China reiterated that it opposes expansionism and hegemonism. It emphasized that building peace and stability in the region and in the world benefits China’s own development. I think that viewpoint is compatible with the common interest of countries in this region.

What was addressed in your private meeting with US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates?

We talked about bilateral cooperation, centering on measures to deal with bad consequences of the Vietnam War. The US will help train our officers in English and give assistance to our army hospitals. It accepts responsibility for joint work to clear toxic chemical residues left from the Vietnam War at Bien Hoa airport and in the Da Nang area.

We’ll continue to train with the Americans on joint search and rescue activities. They promised to share data on weather forecasting. And of course, we’ll continue military exchanges that strengthen the friendship between the two countries and their armed forces. In all these activities, we’ll take care to maintain our autonomy, and not allow the US to intervene in our internal affairs.

What did you talk about with Ma Xiaotian, deputy chief of of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s General Staff?

We had open, straightforward, comradely exchange on all issues. The situation in the East Sea is still calm. Our two nations’ economic, maritime and tourism activities still take place normally – there aren’t any problems.

The [territorial] dispute between the two countries is left by the history. What’s important is that our generation must deal with it at the strategic level, ensuring the interest of the nation and people, maintaining our territorial sovereignty and maintaining peace and stability for development.

All countries share that view – that is, we must maintain peace and stability in the East Sea and by friendly negotiation, find solutions that all can accept.

Noted by Cao Nhat