Chairman of the National Assembly of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong, the country's top legislator, will attend the 28th ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) slated for Aug. 18-24 in Malaysia, a local spokesman announced Thursday.
The 28th AIPA will review its development process and seek measures for regional cooperation in such fields as politics, security, economy and culture, Le Dung, spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at a regular press briefing.
The 28th AIPA will also discuss the coordination between the AIPA and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in drafting the ASEAN Charter, an important document which institutionalizes cooperation activities of the grouping's members.
Trong is to participate in the 28th AIPA activities, pay courtesy visits to the speaker of the Malaysian House of Representative and the president of the Malaysian Senate, and have dialogues with delegates of eight AIPA observers and the European Parliament, he said.
The AIPA, formerly known as the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Organization (AIPO), was established by ASEAN parliamentarians in 1977. It aims to foster closer friendship and cooperation in various areas among parliamentarians in the region and also with the outside world.
The AIPA has eight members: Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. The two other ASEAN members, Brunei and Myanmar, have been given special status as special observers to AIPA.
At its general assembly, the AIPA also holds dialogues on the sidelines with observer countries. This arrangement started in 1979, initially with the European Parliament, which was later expand to other countries such as Japan, South Korea, Australia, Canada, China, New Zealand and Russia.
Source: Xinhua
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