(VOVworld)-Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh has emphasised East Asian connectivity and economic integration during his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos , Switzerland . He said that as the nucleus of regional integration and connectivity, ASEAN countries need internal strength. This demands sustainable economic structures resilient to outside turbulence. Vietnam has urged ASEAN to place poverty reduction and sustainable development at the centre of its development agenda in a manner compatible with and supplementing the UN’s post-2015 development goals.

ASEAN should work with its partners to ensure an environment conducive to integration and connectivity. The association needs to maintain unity, uphold shared responsibilities and maximize its strategic centrality, especially in relation to regional peace, security, and stability. The regional bloc should embrace its role in addressing traditional and non-traditional security challenges, which include the East Sea issue. Recent developments in the South China Sea affect not only concerned countries, but also peace, stability, maritime security, and airspace throughout the region. 
Vietnam and other ASEAN members share the view that the parties concerned must settle disputes peacefully, exercise restraint, and respect and observe international law including the 1982 UNCLOS. While honouring their DOC, parties should also work towards an early completion of a more rigorous Code of Conduct (COC). They have been calling for substantive COC negotiations between ASEAN and China since the first official ASEAN-China SOM consultation last September.