Delegates at the 44th ASEAN Summit in Laos. VNA photo

HÀ NỘI – Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn has highlighted the outcomes of the freshly-ended ASEAN Summits and related meetings in Vientiane, Laos from October 8-11, the Vietnamese delegation’s contributions and bilateral engagements with countries and partners.

Themed "ASEAN: Promoting Connectivity and Resilience", the 44th and 45th ASEAN Summits and related meetings featured nearly 20 activities, brought together more than 30 leaders from ASEAN countries and partners, more than 2,000 delegates, resulting in the adoption of nearly 90 documents. About 1,000 reporters came to cover the regional event.

Sơn said the events had ignited a spirit of resilience, unlocked connectivity potential in new and promising areas and awakened aspirations for the future.

Key achievements included the adoption of the ASEAN Vision Statement on the Indo-Pacific, aimed at establishing a regional framework with ASEAN at its centre. Leaders also issued declarations on enhancing supply chain connectivity, sustainable agriculture, climate change response, and biodiversity.

New cooperation areas, such as the digital economy, digital transformation, green transition, and renewable energy, were highlighted in the vision statement strategies. These initiatives demonstrate ASEAN's proactivity, dynamism and vitality, while also providing a foundation for partners to strengthen ties with the region.

Throughout the four-day summits, PM Chính and the Vietnamese delegation engaged in over 60 bilateral and multilateral activities.

PM Chính's speeches opened up new mindsets, approaches and development ideas, stressing the need for resilience at all levels, strategic connectivity across all dimensions, and readiness for ASEAN's new development phase.

In bilateral meetings with high-ranking Lao leaders, PM Chính reiterated Việt Nam's commitment to its great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation with Laos.

Both sides agreed to continue strengthening cooperation and effective connectivity in various fields, including transportation infrastructure, trade-investment, hi-tech agriculture, food security, quality human resources training, tourism, people-to-people exchange, digital transformation, green transition, circular economy, preservation and protection of relic sites that symbolise the Việt Nam-Laos special solidarity.

The Vietnamese PM praised Laos' role as ASEAN Chair 2024, affirming Việt Nam's readiness to enhance coordination with Laos and other countries to ensure the success of the summits, thereby contributing to Laos' prestige and ASEAN's solidarity and consensus.

Meetings with Lao and Cambodian counterparts focused on enhancing trilateral cooperation to meet practical needs and development requirements of a new era.

On the occasion, the Vietnamese leader had meetings with all senior leaders of participating countries and international organisations, during they underscored their strong relationships with Việt Nam and its growing stature on the international stage.

PM Chính and the leaders also discussed the implementation of agreements and explored new collaboration fields, such as digital transformation, green transition, circular economy, semiconductor, and artificial intelligence (AI), creating opportunities for deeper, more effective and substantive collaboration between Việt Nam and other nations.

Besides, leaders of Vietnamese ministries and agencies also met with their Lao counterparts and those from other countries to discuss specific measures to enhance cooperation in their respective fields.

The successful summits and bilateral engagements underscored Việt Nam's proactive, positive, and responsible image, bolstering its relations with partners and contributing to ASEAN's solidarity and consensus, Sơn said. VNA/VNS