Dialogue with Australian Deputy Foreign and Defense Ministers

Acting Director of the DAV, Dr. Pham Lan Dung, Deputy Foreign Minister Michelle Chan and Deputy Defense Minister Hugh Jeffrey at the Dialogue

The dialogue was participated by nearly 50 delegates, including representatives of various ministries and research institutions in Vietnam as well as diplomatic missions in Hanoi. The delegates had substantive and open exchanges about Australia's interests and policies in the Pacific and Indian Ocean regions and the potential to promote Vietnam-Australia cooperation.

The dialogue was held on the same day as the 8th Strategic Dialogue at the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Defense level between Vietnam and Australia. The two sides agreed to strengthen and promote cooperation at multilateral forums such as the United Nations, ASEAN and mechanisms led by ASEAN.

Australia also reaffirmed its support for resolving disputes in the South China Sea (called East Sea in Vietnamese) by peaceful means and respecting international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Australia also urged all parties to maintain security, safety, and freedom of navigation and aviation in the East Sea, as well as seriously implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and develop an effective and efficient Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) in accordance with international law.

Representatives from the DAV and the Australian Embassy with the two Deputy Ministers

Written by Huong Do; Translated by HD; Photos by Nguyen Huyen