Asia-Pacific security tops Hanoi's meeting agenda

Deputy PM Nhan made the affirmation at the opening ceremony of the 8th General Conference of the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific (CSCAP) in Hanoi on November 21.

However, there remain potential risks threatening the stability of the region, he said, adding that it is not a single, but a combination of traditional and non-traditional challenges facing regional security, including those of marine, water resources, food, and internet security.

Despite the efforts of various nations to build effective regional security architecture, he said, a proper cooperation mechanism to deal with such challenges has not yet been established.

As an architect of regional security, ASEAN has worked hard on this issue in recent years and Vietnam, as the 2010 ASEAN chair, tried its best to maintain and develop the current mechanisms, Mr Nhan noted.

The Deputy PM underlined Vietnam’s joint efforts with other ASEAN member nations to strengthen the bloc’s ties with its partners for the sake of peace, stability and development, and boost and expand regional security architecture.

The bloc has launched a process to enhance ASEAN Defence Ministers’ cooperation and admitted Russia and the US as full-fledged members of the East Asia Summit.

He asked experts and scholars to assess the effectiveness of the current regional cooperation mechanism and propose measures to boost ties of mutual trust and understanding between all the countries in the region.

CSCAP co-chairman Kim Dalchoong said since its establishment, the Council has been expanded with more members admitted and a wider range of issues being discussed.

The CSCAP has become more connected with official channels and has contributed to government and national policy making in the region, he said.

Discussions at the first session focused on dealing with the proliferation of nuclear weapons in the context of the increasing demand for nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

Participants also discussed ways to ensure marine security, including different aspects of building a Code of Conduct.

Later the same day, they exchanged viewed on water resources security and the responsibility to protect. They also heard a presentation by Chinese ambassador to ASEAN, Tong Xiaoling, about the past 20 years of the ASEAN-China relationship. 

The 8th CSCAP General Conference on the theme “Dangers and Dilemmas: Will the New Regional Security Architecture Help?” attracted the participation of 300 domestic and international experts from the 21 CSCAP member nations.