The first ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) inter-sessional meeting on non-proliferation and disarmament, co-chaired by China, the United States and Singapore, ended on Friday in Beijing.

During the three-day meeting which started on July 1, participants discussed the issues of international arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation mechanism, export control and the ARF's function and its future work direction.

The multilateral arms control and disarmament process is facing new opportunities, with the deepened consensus of international community and strengthened international cooperation on non-proliferation, said Chinese Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei at the opening ceremony of the meeting.

The ARF has accumulated useful experiences over years on non-proliferation and disarmament, featuring enhancing mutual trust, mutual respect, cooperating with China and progressing step-by-step, He noted.

He said the ARF has established a security principle characterized by a respect for sovereignty, non-interference in internal affairs and equal dialogue.

"The meeting should be guided by these experiences and principles, and try to reach more consensus on disarmament, non-proliferation and the peaceful use of science and technology, so as to serve the security of the Asia-Pacific region," He stressed.

The ARF, established in 1994, is the main official multilateral dialogue channel on political and security issues in the region. Its 26 members include the 10 ASEAN member states, China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia, Canada, the European Union, India, New Zealand, Russia and the United States.

Source: Xinhua