Hanoi (VNA) - In the 25 years since Vietnam joined ASEAN, it has left a major imprint on the bloc thanks to its willingness, effort, responsibility,and contribution to overall achievements.

Vietnam has participated in and contributed activelyto the region’s integration and community building. Lao Foreign Minister SaleumxayKommasith said that in the political sphere, Vietnam becoming a member of the blocon July 28, 1995 paved the way for other countries like Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia to also join and for ASEANto move from an association of countries with similar political systems to one forall countries in the region to cooperate, regardless of political differences.

Former ASEAN Secretary-GeneralOng Keng Yong stated that with its position and role, Vietnam has become a bridge linking the south andthe north of Southeast Asia.

Geographically anddemographically, the main contribution of Vietnamupon becoming an ASEAN member has been to combine all regions of Southeast Asia into a unified bloc, demonstrating that ASEANhas increased cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region and remained consistent tothe principle of multilateral cooperation to bring about practical benefits to countriesin the region.

Over the past 25 years,Vietnamhas actively worked with other countries to implement important cooperative agreementsand plans, in particular the building of the ASEAN Community. The official formationof the ASEAN Community at the end of 2015 saw remarkable contributions fromVietnam,including initiatives and proposals such as the Hanoi Plan of Action 2010. Vietnam is alsoone of the leading countries in carrying out the ASEAN Community’s goals.

Vietnam’s imprint is also reflected through its contributionto the expansion of ASEAN cooperation. As the Chair in 2010, it launched an initiativeto expand the membership of the East Asia Summit (EAS) by promoting the admission ofRussia and the US. Vietnam also proposedan initiative to expand the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting mechanism (ADMM Plus).

These are very importantmechanisms in links not only within ASEAN but also between ASEAN and other countries,thus helping improve the grouping’s position. Professor Carl Thayer from the University of New South Walesin Australia believes that Vietnam has usedits diplomatic experience well in promoting ASEAN’s relations with world powers.

Through a series ofinitiatives and programmes such as “ASEAN Vision 2020 and Implementation Plan”,“Declaration of ASEAN Concord II”, “ASEAN Charter”, “2009-2015 Roadmap for an ASEANCommunity”, “ASEAN Integration Initiative”, and “Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity”,Vietnam is assessed to have proven its role in coordinating mechanisms with internationalpartners by connecting, expanding, and deepening relations between ASEAN and thesepartners.

Notably, the rolesand responsibilities of Vietnamare clearly demonstrated through its successful undertaking of the ASEAN Chairmanship,introducing specific contributions and initiatives. Just three years after joiningASEAN, as the Chairman of the bloc in 1998 it drafted the Hanoi Plan of Action to promotepost-Asian financial crisis recovery, contributing to narrowing the developmentgap among member states.

In 2010, when assumingthe Chair of ASEAN for a second time, it promoted the completion of practical activitiesafter ASEAN approved declarations and action plans.

Experts also said thatover the past 25 years, Vietnamhas contributed greatly to the dynamism and economic attractiveness of ASEAN, aswell as to ensuring regional peace and security.

Malaysian ProfessorYeah Kim Leng said it has made contributions to maintaining the region’s averageannual growth of 5 percent over the past several decades and played an importantrole in maintaining the attractiveness of ASEAN among foreign investors.

In terms of peace andsecurity, Vietnam helped buildthe Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the EastSea as well as sped up the building ofa Code of Conduct in the EastSea, so as to ensure peaceand stability in the waters. Former ASEAN Secretary-General Ong Keng Yong said thatVietnamhas made positive and constructive proposals and maintained the principle of mutualrespect and respect for peace and stability.

In 2020, as Vietnam undertakesthe ASEAN Chairmanship for a third time, the country in particular and ASEAN ingeneral face great challenges from COVID-19. However, Vietnam has playedan important role in leading a collective response to the pandemic, said ASEAN Secretary-GeneralLim Jock Hoi. Under its Chair, ASEAN has held several online conferences to discussways to deal with the disease, in particular the Special ASEAN and ASEAN Plus ThreeSummits on COVID-19, and agreed on speeding up the implementation of a COVID-19ASEAN Response Fund, a Regional Reserve for Medical Supplies, a Standard OperatingProcedure (SOP) on Public Health Emergencies, and a Post-COVID-19 Recovery Plan.

Frederick Kliem, ananalyst with the Centre for Multilateralism Studies at the Singaporean-based S.Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), affirmed that Vietnam is a respectable,trustworthy, and constructive member of ASEAN.

Meanwhile, Lim JockHoi stressed that the country’s economic achievements, political stability, leadershipvision, and energy are “assets” for the building of the ASEAN Community./.