Political News Headlines 19/5 Defence Minister attends ADMM-8 in Myanmar Defence Minister Gen. Phung Quang Thanh is leading a Vietnamese delegation to the 8th ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting (ADMM) in Myanmar from May 19-21. The delegation’s attendance demonstrates Vietnam’s pro-active and responsible participation in ADMM cooperation areas, and protects national and regional interests in accordance with international law. Established in 2006, ADMM is held annually and is ASEAN’s highest defence cooperation and consultation mechanism, aiming to promote peace and stability in the region through dialogue. Vietnam’s delegation pay respect to deceased Lao officials A high-level delegation of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) and the Vietnamese State arrived in Vientiane on May 18 to attend the burial ceremony of the Lao officials who passed away in an accident on their working trip. The delegation was led by Le Hong Anh, Politburo member and permanent member of the CPV Central Committee’s Secretariat. Delegates included Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Politburo member and Deputy Prime Minister; Senior Lieutenant General Do Ba Ty, Party Central Committee member, Chief of the General Staff of Vietnam People’s Army and Vice Minister of Defence; Senior Lieutenant General Dang Van Hieu, Party Central Committee member and Permanent Vice Minister of Public Security; Le Hoang Quan, Party Central Committee member and Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee; Ngo Thi Doan Thanh, Party Central Committee member and Chairwoman of Hanoi People’s Council; Nguyen Manh Hung, Vietnamese Ambassador to Laos; among others. The delegation laid wreaths at the coffins of Lao People’s Revolutionary Party (LPRP) Politburo member, Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Douangchay Phichit; LPRP Central Committee’s Secretary and Minister of Public Security Thoongbane Sengaphone; LPRP Central Committee’s Secretary and head of the LPRP Central Committee’s Commission for Propaganda and Training Cheuang Sombounkhane; LPRP Central Committee’s Secretary and Secretary of the Party Committee and Governor of Vientiane Sukhan Mahalad and other senior officials. Writing in the memorial book, the Vietnamese officials expressed deep sympathy to the Lao side over the officials’ deaths, which they said is a great loss to the Party, State, National Assembly and Government of Laos as well as to their families. They also said the Vietnamese leaders and people suffer from the loss of their close comrades and friends who made active contributions to consolidating and developing the traditional friendship and special solidarity between the two nations. Later, the Vietnamese delegation was received by the Lao Party General Secretary and President Chummaly Saynhasone. On behalf of the delegation, Le Hong Anh conveyed to the Lao side the deepest sympathy from the CPV Central Committee, National Assembly and Government of Vietnam, as well as from Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, President Truong Tan Sang, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung over the deaths of the Lao officials. Anh expressed his belief that the Lao Party, State, National Assembly, Government and people will overcome the pain to continue with the cause of national construction and defence. The Lao Party Secretary General and President thanked the Vietnamese Party and Government for their message of condolences and the sending of the delegation to the burial ceremony for the deceased officials. He affirmed that the Lao people will turn their sorrow into actions to fulfil the tasks set by the 9th Congress of the LPRP. Also on the occasion, Politburo member, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Vietnam-Laos Cooperation Sub-Committee Nguyen Xuan Phuc; Politburo member, Party Central Committee’s Secretary and head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Popularisation and Education Dinh The Huynh; Politburo member and Defence Minister Phung Quang Thanh; Politburo member and Minister of Public Security Tran Dai Quang; Politburo member and Secretary of Hanoi Party Committtee Pham Quang Nghi; Party Central Committee member, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh; and Party Central Committee member and head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for External Relations Hoang Binh Quan sent messages of condolences to the Lao side. The Lao officials died when their plane crashed in Nadi village, Pec district in Xieng Khouang province on May 17 morning. US Congressman: Vietnamese people desire to live in peace The Vietnamese people desire to live in peace and prosperity, with the respect of their neighbours, US Congressman Jason Chaffetz said in his statement released on May 16. “China ’s unilateral deployment of a state-owned oil rig in the waters of the South China/East Sea off the Paracel Islands is deeply concerning,” he stressed. These waters are subject to an ongoing territorial dispute between China and Vietnam which must be resolved through peaceful negotiation in the appropriate bilateral and multilateral forums, he added. According to the congressman, this incident is the latest in a series of actions taken by Beijing that have contributed to a growing sense of uneasiness in the region. “I believe the US should strive to live up to its historic role of responsible leadership in the region in order to secure these blessings for both the American people and the people of the Asia-Pacific,” he said. Leaders pay tribute on birthday of late President Ho Chi Minh State and Party leaders yesterday (May 18) laid a wreath to President Ho Chi Minh at his mausoleum to mark the 124th anniversary of his birthday on May 19.   The Party, Government and Viet Nam Fatherland Front leaders pay a floral tribute to President Ho Chi Minh at his mausoleum to mark the 124th anniversary of his birthday on May 19.  They included the Secretary of the Communist Party of Viet Nam, Nguyen Phu Trong, President Truong Tan Sang, NA Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung, and Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung. Former top leaders and other senior leaders and revolutionary veterans also joined the delegation. Delegations from the Ministries of Defence and Public Security, and the Ha Noi People's Committee also paid tribute. Worldwide support voiced for Viet Nam Individuals and organisations around the world have raised concern about China's illegal placement of an oil rig in Viet Nam's territorial waters. One Italian politician, Enzo Amendola from the Democratic Party, called for Europe to express stronger concern because the tension was not only threatening peace and stability in the region but might even have an effect on Europe. In a statement released on Friday, US Congressman Jason Chaffetz said China's unilateral deployment of a State-owned oil rig in the waters of the South China/East Asia Sea off the Paracel Islands was deeply concerning. "These waters are subject to an ongoing territorial dispute between China and Viet Nam which must be resolved through peaceful negotiation in the appropriate bilateral and multilateral forums," he said. "This incident is the latest in a series of actions taken by Beijing that have contributed to a growing sense of uneasiness in the region," he said. The US Congressmen said that when visiting the region recently he found that Vietnamese wanted peace and prosperity. "I believe the US should strive to live up to its historic role of responsible leadership in the region to secure these blessings for both the American people and the people of the Asia-Pacific," he said. President of the France-Viet Nam Friendship Parliamentarian Group, Christian Poncelet, criticised China's placement of the Haiyang Shiyou-981 oil rig in Viet Nam's exclusive economic zone (EEZ). In a letter to the Vietnamese Ambassador to France, Duong Chi Dung, Senator Poncelet said China's action was illegal, based on international law, especially the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) adopted at the 1982 Montego Bay Conference. He said the area where China had stationed its rig was within Viet Nam's EEZ and continental shelf, adding that China's act went against bilateral agreements, saying that China must respect Viet Nam's sovereignty. Earlier, the Governor of Choisy-le-Roi city in southern Paris, Didier Guillaume, said China's move seriously violated Viet Nam's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and threatened maritime security and safety. He said he highly valued the determination of the Vietnamese Party, State and people to safeguard their national sovereignty. Meanwhile, the former mayor of France's Montreuil city Jean-Pierre Brard said at a ceremony marking President Ho Chi Minh's 124th birthday that China should respect its neighbours although they are smaller. An expert from South Korea, Professor Kim Tae-wan, head of the Political Science Department at Dong-eui University told Vietnam News Agency reporters that China's unilateral act of placing the rig in Viet Nam's EEZ infringed upon the 1982 UNCLOS. Several Italian parliamentarians have called for China and Viet Nam to seek a peaceful solution in line with international law, particularly the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, to ensure freedom of navigation. Condolences sent to Laos over plane crash The Party Central Committee, National Assembly, President and Government of Vietnam on May 17 sent a message of condolences to their Lao counterparts over a military plane crash that killed some high-ranking officials of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party (LPRP) and government. “We greatly mourn over the sudden decease while on assignment of Politburo member, Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Douangchay Phichit; LPRP Central Committee’s Secretary and Minister of Public Security Thoongbane Sengaphone; LPRP Central Committee’s Secretary and head of the LPRP Central Committee’s Commission for Propaganda and Training Cheuang Sombounkhanh; LPRP Central Committee’s Secretary and Secretary of the Party Committee and Governor of Vientiane Sukhan Mahalad and some other senior officials,” the message wrote. This is a great loss to the Party, State, National Assembly and Government of Laos as well as to their families, the message said, adding the Vietnamese leaders and people also suffer from the loss of their close comrades and friends who made active contributions to consolidating and developing the traditional friendship and special solidarity between the two nations. The Party Central Committee, National Assembly, State and Government of Vietnam extend the deepest sympathy to their Lao counterparts and the families of the deceased officials. “We believe that the Lao Party, State and people will soon overcome this great loss to continue their national construction, protection and development,” said the message. Minister attends APEC meet in China Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang clarified Viet Nam's priorities in the APEC co-operation framework at the 20th Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting (MRT-20) that opened in Qingdao, China, on Saturday. The priorities included supply chain connectivity, capital assistance for small and medium-sized enterprises and the increase of investment in infrastructure development, Hoang said. During the two-day meeting, the ministers discussed preparations for the 22nd Summit to be held in Beijing in November. They also tabled the implementation of the forum's priorities in 2014. Established in 1989, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum is an intergovernmental grouping that has worked to reduce tariffs and other trade barriers across the Asia-Pacific region, creating efficient domestic economies and dramatically increasing exports. APEC's 21 member economies account for approximately 40 percent of the world's population, about 55 per cent of its GDP and 44 per cent of its trade. Viet Nam joined the forum in 1998. On the MRT-20 sidelines, Hoang had a meeting with Chinese Minister of Commerce Gao Hucheng last Friday. He declared that China's illegal placement of the Haiyang Shiyou-981rig in Viet Nam's exclusive economic zone and continental shelf was a serious violation of Viet Nam's sovereignty and jurisdiction, infringing the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea as well as the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea signed by ASEAN and China. China's move also went against the common agreement reached by the two countries' leaders, he said. Hoang stated that Viet Nam protested the act and demanded China immediately removed the oil rig out of Viet Nam's waters. He spoke of recent activities displaying anger at China at some foreign-invested firms, saying these were motivated by China's infringement of Viet Nam's sovereignty. Among the protestors, there were individuals who took advantage of the situation to cause social disorder and damage the assets of foreign enterprises. They would be severely punished, he said. He told his Chinese counterpart that the Vietnamese Government and relevant ministries had taken measures to ensure the safety, property and operation of foreign businesses in Viet Nam, including those from China. During the meeting, the two ministers also expressed their wish to enhance bilateral economic, trade and investment partnerships for the benefit of both peoples. Hoang also held bilateral meetings with US Trade Representative Michael Froman, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy of the Republic of Korea Yoon Sang-jick, and representatives of the American Business Coalition led by leaders of the US Chamber of Commerce. President praises marine forces' efforts On May 18, Chairman of the Presidential Office Dao Viet Trung presented gifts and conveyed President Truong Tan Sang’s regards to Vietnamese marine police and fisheries resources surveillance forces. Trung praised the determination of the Vietnamese forces to defend national sovereignty over the last few days and said that President Sang praised their efforts in overcoming difficulties to protest China’s illegal placement of its oil rig in Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone. President Sang asked all forces to exercise restraint before the provocation of Chinese vessels and resolutely oppose by peaceful measures in accordance with international law. Source: VNN/VOV/VNS/VNA