Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said ASEAN members should "continue to do their utmost to strengthen the association unity, increase friendship and the sense of community, promote cooperation and solve all differences by peaceful measures," Vietnam News Agency reported Thursday.
Dung made the statement in a speech here marking the 41st anniversary of the founding of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which falls on Aug. 8.
Each member country should make a strong political commitment to the ASEAN linkage process and the ASEAN family, further harmonizing national interests with that of the whole ASEAN region for a common goal of the association.
"The ASEAN should take practical measures to quickly narrow the existing development gap between its member countries, particularly between the old and new members, through the efficient implementation of the ASEAN Linkage Initiatives," he said.
He suggested that the ASEAN make further efforts to improve the quality of "unity in diversity" in the spirit of common objectives and basic principles such as "consensus" and "non-interference".
The bloc should accelerate the implementation of programs of actions on the building of the ASEAN Community by taking specific measures and preparing appropriate resources, he said.
He also recommended that ASEAN member countries include their national development programs into ASEAN connectivity programs.
The ASEAN has 10 member states, including Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Source: Xinhua
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