Vietnam, Malaysia vow to step up strategic partnership

Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh (L) and his Malaysian counterpart Ahmad Zahid Hamidi

The consensus was reached during Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh’s visit to Malaysia from July 11-13 at the invitation of his Malaysian counterpart Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

On July 12, Deputy PM Binh met with Senate President Sanasee Vigneswaran, and held talks with his Malaysian counterpart Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. 

He also had a meeting with UMNO Secretary-General Tengku Adnan bin Tengku Mansor, and hosted receptions for President of the Court of Appeal Raus bin Sharif, Attorney-General Mohamed Apandi bin Ali and minister in charge of the National Security Council Shahidan bin Kassim. 

At these meetings, the two sides agreed to foster collaboration in national defence and security, and justice, including the early organisation of the first meeting of the high-level committee on defence cooperation at ministerial level. 

The two sides will step up the partnership between military forces and set up a new working group on naval cooperation, while expanding collaboration in crime combat, especially organised, cross-border and high-tech crimes, and human traffickers. 

The two sides will negotiate and sign a memorandum of understanding on legal cooperation and a range of agreements on fighting human trafficking, extradition, the transfer of convicted persons and legal assistance, in order to create the legal framework for joint work in combating crime.

The Malaysian side gave positive response to Vietnam’s proposals to improve the efficiency of cooperation in oil and gas and soon negotiate an agreement on fishery cooperation and another on aviation services. 

They shared the necessity to facilitate investment of each other’s businesses, particularly in rice trading, halal food processing, agricultural product export, processing industry in service of rural development and support industry. 

The Malaysian side said they will consider receiving more Vietnamese labourers and pledge to support Vietnamese working and living in Malaysia. 

Deputy PM Binh appreciated Malaysian competent agencies’ efforts to handle the Vietnamese fishermen issue on the humanitarian spirit and suggested the Malaysian side reduce death penalty for a number of Vietnamese prisoners in the host country. 

The Malaysian side pledged to ensure the legitimate rights and a fair trial for Doan Thi Huong, a Vietnamese suspect in the death of a citizen of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in  Malaysia. 

The two sides committed to tighten their coordination in building and developing the ASEAN Community and consolidate the group’s unity and central role in the region.

They also affirmed the significance of peace, stability, security, safety and freedom of navigation and aviation in the East Sea, and stressed the need to settle disputes by peaceful measures on the basis of international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and respect for legal and diplomatic processes; not use or threaten to use force; fully abide by the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC); accelerate the building of a framework of a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) towards early formation of the COC.

Deputy PM Truong Hoa Binh is scheduled to pay a courtesy visit to Prime Minister Najib Razak and receive representatives of some leading Malaysian companies on July 13.

Vietnam, Myanmar increase security cooperation

Minister of Public Security To Lam

Minister of Public Security To Lam asked for stronger collaboration between Vietnam and Myanmar in fighting crime via bilateral and multilateral mechanisms during a reception in Hanoi on July 12 for Myanmar Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Aung Soe. 

Aung Soe is in Vietnam to attend the fifth Vietnam-Myanmar security dialogue at deputy ministerial level. 

Lam said the deputy ministerial-level security dialogue mechanism facilitates practical and intensive cooperation of the two countries in the fields of public security, police and personnel training, especially when trans-national crime in the region shows complicated development. 

He added that the two sides should maintain the mechanism and improve its effectiveness to contribute to safeguarding security and social order and safety in each country.

Aung Soe, for his part, expressed his delight at close coordination in fighting crimes between the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security and the Myanmar Ministry of Home Affairs over the past years. 

The fifth Vietnam-Myanmar security dialogue at deputy ministerial level took place in Hanoi from July 10-13 under the co-chair of Deputy Minister of Public Security Bui Van Nam and Deputy Minister Aung Soe. The dialogue assessed the implementation of the outcomes reached at the fourth dialogue in the fields of security, police, Interpol cooperation and legal framework building. 

They agreed to facilitate all-level visits, further increase the exchange of information regarding security, social safety and order, the fight against drug, terrorist, human trafficking, and transnational crimes.

The two sides will continue speeding up negotiations towards signing agreements, conventions and legal documents in the near future. 

The next dialogue is scheduled to be held in Myanmar in 2018.