(VOVworld) – Vietnam and Myanmar issued a joint statement on Wednesday on the occasion of Myanmar President Htin Kyaw’s state visit to Vietnam.

Myanmar President Htin Kyaw and spouse are in Vietnam for an official state visit from 26 October to 28 October 2016. (Photo: VOV)

According to the statement, the two Presidents held talks and agreed to increase the exchange of all-level visits and contact through all channels – Party, government, state, National Assembly, and people-to-people exchanges - and maintain existing bilateral cooperative mechanisms.

The two countries will hold the 9th meeting of the Vietnam-Myanmar Inter-Committee on Bilateral Cooperation in Vietnam, the 7th meeting of the Political Consultation at deputy foreign minister level in Myanmar in 2017, and other sectoral cooperative mechanisms.

The two leaders pledged to deepen mutually beneficial bilateral trade-investment ties and create the best possible conditions for the strong development of business activities.

The two presidents shared their views and interest in peace and stability in the region, and reiterated their commitment to strengthening the bilateral defense-security cooperation mechanism through sharing information and experience, and optimizing existing cooperative mechanisms.

They agreed on the early establishment of a defense policy dialogue and a joint working group of the two defense ministries. The fifth security dialogue of the two countries will be held in Vietnam in the near future, and negotiations will be accelerated for the signing of an MoU on mutual assistance in criminal matters.

The two sides acknowledged the importance of cooperation to respond to traditional and non-traditional security challenges while encouraging coordination of law enforcement forces of the two countries in preventing individuals and organizations from using one country’s territory to attempt sabotage against the other.

The two Presidents supported stronger people-to-people exchanges and ties between localities.

The two sides will collaborate in using the water resources of the Mekong River in a sustainable and effective manner, in the framework of the Mekong River Commission (MRC) and related organizations.

The Presidents affirmed their commitment to maintaining peace, stability, and prosperity in the region and  bolstering efforts to build the ASEAN Community through full and effective implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision to 2025, and confirmed the importance of the peaceful settlement of disputes in the region and of efforts to maintain ASEAN’s unity and promote the bloc’s central role in regional architectures.

The State leaders reiterated their commitment to safeguarding and promoting peace, security, and stability in the region, as well as the peaceful settlement of disputes, including full respect for diplomatic and legal process, no use of force or threat to use force, and obedience to widely-recognized principles of international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS 1982).

The two sides re-affirmed support for the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and accelerated joint work to finalize a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC).