Hanoi (VNA) ✤– Nguyen Quoc Dung, Deputy Foreign Minister and head of SOM ASEAN of Vietnam, as the Chair of the ASEAN and the ASEAN+3 cooperation framework, chaired an online meeting of ASEAN+3 Senior Officials’ Meeting withChina, Japan and the Republic of Korea on July 20.

Dung shared orientations to promoting ASEAN+3 in the nearfuture, highlighting a need to step up regional connectivity, tap achievementsin digital technology in regional economic recovery, and improving the regionalcapacity to response to emerging challenges. He also made known Vietnam’s proposal to issue an declaration ofleaders at the 23rd ASEAN+3 Summit on improving economic-financialresilience amid emerging challenges. On regional and global issues of shared concern, ASEAN+3 countries shared the importance of maintaining dialogues and cooperation,building trust, upholding international law, forming and sharing the standards ofconduct in relations with nations so as to maintain a regional environment of peace and stabilityfor prosperous development. Participants committed to promoting regional economic linkageand striving to complete the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)as scheduled. The ASEAN suggested China, Japan and the RoK enhancecoordination in the research and production of vaccines against COVID-19, aswell as in regional common efforts to mitigate the impact of the pandemic. On the evening the same day, Dung also chaired a meeting ofsenior officials of 18 countries attending the East Asia Summit./.