Hanoi (VNA) – The SpecialCommittee on the Charter of the United Nations opened its annual meeting onFebruary 21 with the participation of representatives from more than 80 memberstates.

This year’s session focuses on the role ofthe UN Charter in maintaining international peace and security, and the peacefulsettlement of disputes as well as the role of regional mechanisms andagreements.

Addressing the session, Minister CounsellorLe Thi Minh Thoa, Deputy Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, underlined the need to abide by the UN Charter and principles of internationallaw to maintain international peace and security, especially when the world isfacing many common challenges.

Regarding sanctions, Thoa said the measure should only be applied when it is the last solution. In order to prevent adverse effects on economic activities and people's lives, sanctions should bebuilt on a clear legal basis with specific objectives and application time, shesaid.

In addition, it is necessary to makeperiodic reviews to ensure that when the goal is achieved, sanctions are alsolifted, said the Vietnamese representative who called on sanction committeesand expert groups to fully consider the impact of sanctions on third countries.

Over the peaceful settlement of disputes, Thoa affirmed that Vietnam alwaysupholds this fundamental principle of international law, and supports measuresstated in Article 33 of the UN Charter.

Vietnam supports the exchange and sharingof information on national practices in using regional mechanisms andagreements to build trust, prevent and reduce conflicts, she stated.

She affirmed that at the regional level, theASEAN has taken the leading role in efforts to establish a series of effectivedialogue mechanisms such as the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) and the East AsiaSummit (EAS).

Along with continuing to reinforcingfundamental documents for friendly cooperation and dispute settlement such asthe Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC), the associationhas worked with partners to implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Partiesin the East Sea (DOC) and negotiate for a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC)in line with international law and the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982(UNCLOS), said Thoa.

The Special Committee on the Charter of theUnited Nations was established in 1975, creating a forum for member states to discussthe implementation of the Charter. The Special Committee meets annually to considerrelevant proposals. Since its adoption in 1945, the UN Charter has been revisedthree times in 1963, 1965 and 1973./.