Heads of delegations attended the 3rd Foreign Ministers' Meeting for Mekong-Lancang Cooperation in December, 2017 in China. (Photo: Luong Anh Tuan/VNA)

Themed "Our River of Peace and Sustainable Development", the meeting promotes comprehensive cooperation to build a responsible community and ensure common interests in the Subregion. Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc attended the event. The Mekong-Lancang conference is held every 2 years and member countries take turns hosting. Cambodia and China co-organize this year’s conference. Mekong-Lancang cooperation focuses on the management of water resources, connection in production, border economic cooperation, agriculture, and poverty reduction.

Participants will review cooperation progress made since the 1^st conference, discuss future orientations, and approve documents, including a Phnom Penh Declaration and a Mekong-Lancang Action Plan until 2022.

Scientific, sustainable use of Mekong resources

The Mekong Subregion has many development opportunities but it must also meet challenges in security, environment, water resources, and climate change. Mekong-Lancang cooperation can play an important role in promoting sustainable development in the subregion, strengthening neighborliness among members, helping each country implement the 2030 Agenda, and deepening the ASEAN-China strategic partnership.

At the 1^st conference in 2016, 6 countries agreed on major orientations for a cooperation mechanism. Since then members have established dialogue mechanisms including high-level, ministerial, and senior officials meetings, and cooperation and research centers on water resources and the environment of the Mekong and Lancang river. Joint projects have been carried out, such as the Forum of Women’s Cooperation, the Forum of Lanchang-Mekong Tourist Cities Cooperation, and the Mekong-Lancang Special Cooperation Fund.  

Promoting Mekong-Lancang cooperation will require a practical approach, and a harmonious combination of mechanisms and cooperation frameworks. Greater effort should be invested in management and use of Mekong water, economic connectivity, sustainable agricultural production, trade circulation, and cross-border investment and tourism.

Vietnam’s responsible participation

Vietnam has actively participated in Mekong-Lancang cooperation since the early days. Its initiatives on water resource cooperation and economic connectivity have been acknowledged by other countries and in the Sanya Declaration and other documents of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation.

Vietnam has proposed projects that match Mekong-Lancang’s priorities on flood and drought management and harmonization of criteria and procedures.

It has worked with China and other Mekong Subregion countries to establish a center for Mekong-Lancang water resource cooperation to share information and improve management capability.

As a responsible member, Vietnam will cooperate with other Mekong-Lancang countries to apply new technology, improve productivity, form agricultural value chains toward sustainable agriculture, ensure food security and water resource.  

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc’s participation shows Vietnam’s respect for Mekong-Lancang cooperation, promote common contents suitable to Vietnam’s interests, strengthen its solidarity and comprehensive cooperation with Cambodia and strategic comprehensive cooperation with China.