HÀ NỘI – The sixth deputy ministerial-level strategic defence dialogue between Việt Nam and China recently convened in Chengdu city in southwestern China’s Sichuan Province.

Deputy Defence Minister Nguyễn Chí Vịnh and Admiral Sun Jianguo, deputy chief of the Joint Staff Department of China’s Central Military Commission, co-chaired the meeting which opened on Friday.

In his opening speech, Vịnh said that the two countries could tackle current differences and gain mutual benefits with the assistance of political efforts by the two Party’s leaders and correct perceptions held by both militaries.

Sun Jianguo pointed to the importance of the 6th dialogue, being held 25 years after the two countries normalised relations, adding that the long-lasting friendship has been fostered by generations of leaders.

The nation’s chairs said they were pleased with the thriving bilateral military co-operation, contributing to the Việt Nam-China strategic comprehensive cooperative partnership.

Since the previous strategic defence dialogue was held, upbeat outcomes have been recorded in delegation exchanges, education-training and naval collaboration. Also, both countries continue to operate their hotline and exchange experience in participating in UN peacekeeping missions. Further, their annual border defence friendship exchanges have been considered a highlight of their joint activities.

Vịnh and Sun agreed to maintain the pace of, and expand collaboration in a number of fields, including press exchanges, defence industry meetings,  as well as teaching the Chinese and Vietnamese languages.

They acknowledged that both sides should lay the groundwork for the signing of documents regarding the joint vision of the Việt Nam-China military cooperation and the systematisation of Việt Nam-China border defence friendship exchanges.

They highlighted the need for proper preparation of their upcoming border defence friendship exchange, slated for early 2017.

They added that they hoped that the Vietnamese Institute for Military Strategy and the Chinese Academy of Military Science would promptly implement a join project on the collection of documents and memorabilia about friendship between the two countries’ armies and the thoughts of Hồ Chí Minh and Mao Zedong on solidarity during the wars of resistance against France and the US.

Concerning regional security, Sun said China sought to develop friendly relations with its neighbouring countries, while Vịnh stated that Việt Nam welcomed increased collaboration between China and ASEAN member states for peace and stability in the region.

The officials talked frankly about the two countries’ differences regarding the East Sea (South China Sea) issue.

They achieved consensus on controlling disagreements and increasing education to raise awareness among the two countries’ military personnel and people about respecting common perceptions reached by their Party and State leaders.

Vịnh reiterated Việt Nam’s persistent stance that all parties involved ought to settle disputes by peaceful measures in line with international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Also, they should seriously implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and soon complete the building of a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC), he added.

“We are determined to protect our sovereignty, abide by international law, respect the benefits of the involved sides, and prevent disagreements from developing into conflicts,” Vịnh stated. – VNS