VN nominee gets ASEAN support

HA NOI — Foreign ministers from the Association of South-East Asian Nations are in favour of Viet Nam's nomination of Deputy Foreign Minister Le Luong Minh to head the regional group for the 2013-2017 tenure, according to the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry.

Speaking at a press briefing in Ha Noi yesterday, the ministry's spokesperson Luong Thanh Nghi said Minh's nomination to be ASEAN's Secretary-General was made during the recent 45th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting, and will be considered by high-ranking ASEAN officials at the association's 21st Summit in Phnom Penh in November.

In other matters, responding to questions on reports that China had sent a large number of fishing vessels to the East Sea, the spokesperson said, "all activities in the East Sea must be in accordance with international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the spirit of the Declaration on Conduct of the Parties in the East Sea (DOC), on the basis of respecting the sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction of all countries, contributing to peace, stability in the region and preserving the maritime environment and resources". — VNS