Japan, Vietnam agree on strong defense ties amid China threats# WaterWorld - 未名水世界
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SINGAPORE (Kyodo) -- Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera and
Vietnamese Defense Minister Gen. Phung Quang Thanh agreed Sunday to
strengthen defense cooperation amid alarm in both countries over China's
maritime assertiveness in the East and South China seas.
Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera, left, and his Vietnamese
counterpart Gen. Phung Quang Thanh shake hands in Singapore June 1. ©
Kyodo
"We need to send a joint message among parties concerned because doing so
will help resolve issues that we are confronting," Onodera told reporters
after te talks, held on the sidelines of a regional security forum in
Singapore.
Onodera told his counterpart at the outset that Japan supports Vietnam'
s handling of its recent standoff with China, that the use of force to
change the status quo should not be tolerated and that the issue should be
resolved through dialogue.
Regional tensions remain high after a Vietnamese fishing boat sank
Monday after colliding with a Chinese ship. The incident came after China
unilaterally deployed an oil drilling rig in disputed waters around the
Paracel Islands in the South China Sea.
During the talks, the Vietnamese defense minister said China has put
pressure on Hanoi, but that territorial issues should be resolved peacefully
in accordance with international law.
The ministers were in Singapore to attend the three-day Shangri-La
Dialogue through Sunday to discuss regional security challenges and defense
cooperation.
Vietnamese Defense Minister Gen. Phung Quang Thanh agreed Sunday to
strengthen defense cooperation amid alarm in both countries over China's
maritime assertiveness in the East and South China seas.
Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera, left, and his Vietnamese
counterpart Gen. Phung Quang Thanh shake hands in Singapore June 1. ©
Kyodo
"We need to send a joint message among parties concerned because doing so
will help resolve issues that we are confronting," Onodera told reporters
after te talks, held on the sidelines of a regional security forum in
Singapore.
Onodera told his counterpart at the outset that Japan supports Vietnam'
s handling of its recent standoff with China, that the use of force to
change the status quo should not be tolerated and that the issue should be
resolved through dialogue.
Regional tensions remain high after a Vietnamese fishing boat sank
Monday after colliding with a Chinese ship. The incident came after China
unilaterally deployed an oil drilling rig in disputed waters around the
Paracel Islands in the South China Sea.
During the talks, the Vietnamese defense minister said China has put
pressure on Hanoi, but that territorial issues should be resolved peacefully
in accordance with international law.
The ministers were in Singapore to attend the three-day Shangri-La
Dialogue through Sunday to discuss regional security challenges and defense
cooperation.