Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Ha Noi, July 28 (VNA) -- "The second Ministerial Meeting on Mekong-Ganga Cooperation will be crowned with success, thus helping deepen the friendship and cooperation among countries in the Mekong and Ganga basins, for the sake of regional and international peace and stability and in the interest of our peoples' prosperity."

So said Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Manh Cam of Viet Nam at the opening session of the second Ministerial Meeting on Mekong-Ganga Cooperation held in Ha Noi on July 28.

He continued: "Given the strong development of globalisation and international economic integration, the increasing interdependence among countries and the widening development gap and rich-poor disparity, the cooperation between States in the Mekong and Ganga basins is in the vital interest of our six riparian nations to work closely to help this under-developed region rise up on its development path.

"Our six nations in the Mekong and Ganga basins have many similarities, historically, culturally and in lifestyle. We are also closed to each other geographically. In the history, we had stood side by side and supported one another in the struggle for national independence and freedom of each country. Over the past years, the friendship, cooperation and mutual support between our nations have been unceasingly cemented and strengthened. At present, there remain great potential for our cooperation in the economic, cultural and social fields. These cooperation programmes are, however, promoted mainly on a bilateral basis and within the framework of regional arrangements. With the birth of the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation Programme, we have, for the first time, put in place an inter-subregional arrangement, which brings together our six nations in a cooperation framework to come up with initiatives and joint efforts to intensify the solidarity and friendship among our nations and better harness all cooperation potential for the benefits and prosperity of our people. The Mekong-Ganga Cooperation can be seen as an arrangement which was established on the basis of geographical, historical, cultural and economic similarities as well as complementary potential of countries in the two basins. This is also a clear demonstration of our political will and determination to promote cooperation in the common interest of the peoples in the region.

"In that spirit, the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation, a bold but practical initiative which receives wide support from all parties, was officially launched at the Inaugural Ministerial Meeting in Vientiane, the Laos People's Democratic Republic last November. This arrangement continues to develop step by step. The success of the Vientiane Meeting laid the foundation for the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation to become a new concept full of vitality in regional cooperation, making important contributions to the enhancement of the friendship and cooperation among countries in the Mekong and Ganga basins. Even though the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation is only at the initial stage and much remains to be done for establishing effective cooperation frameworks and institutions, we are fully confident that the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation will strongly grow in the time to come and become a good model of inter-subregional cooperation.

"As a country situated in the Mekong basin, Viet Nam always actively participates in the cooperation mechanisms of the Mekong basin and highly values the significance and benefits of these cooperation programmes. We therefore attach great importance to the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation and view it as an important bridge connecting the two Mekong and Ganga Sub-regions, a bridge connecting India and the Southeast Asian countries, for the sake of friendship and cooperation in the common interests of our countries as well as that of peace and stability in the region and the world. In that spirit, Viet Nam will do its utmost and work closely with countries in the Mekong and Ganga basins to develop and complete cooperation arrangements for implementing agreed cooperation programmes.

"Following the success of the Vientiane Meeting, the Ministerial Meeting on Mekong-Ganga Cooperation this time will endorse an important document, namely the Ha Noi Programme of Action, and conduct discussions on agreements in various fields in order to adopt concrete areas and mechanisms for cooperation. With that, I would like to declare open the Second Ministerial Meeting on Mekong-Ganga Cooperation," Deputy Prime Minister Cam concluded.--VNA