Photo: Department of Boundary and Ocean Affairs of Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Chinese and Vietnamese government delegations convened for border negotiations in Kunming, Southwest China's Yunnan Province, on Tuesday.

Deputy Director General of the Department of Boundary and Ocean Affairs of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the representative of the National Boundary Commission under the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs co-chaired the chief representatives' work meeting of the China-Vietnam Land Border Joint Committee. Relevant central and local departments from both countries also attended the meeting.

The meeting was held in a friendly, candid and pragmatic atmosphere. Both sides conducted in-depth exchanges of views on commemorating the 25th anniversary of the delimitation of their territorial boundaries, a historic border treaty between the two countries that sends a clear message that neighboring countries can resolve disputes without external influence. They also discussed the celebration marking the 15th anniversary of the implementation of three legal documents on the land border signed between the two countries, as well as the construction of the Detian-Ban Gioc Waterfall, China's first cross-border tourism attraction. Broad consensus was reached on these issues.

Both sides agreed to continue effectively utilizing the joint committee mechanism, carefully prepare for the 11th meeting of the joint committee, and further deepen border management and cooperation between the two countries, in a bid to ensure a clear and stable China-Vietnam border and the prosperity and peace of the border areas, properly manage border and maritime disputes, and make a positive contribution to building a China-Vietnam community with a shared future of strategic significance.

The China-Vietnam Land Border Joint Committee was set up in 2009 to manage the border, land markers and border gates in accordance with relevant provisions of the China-Vietnam Land Border Demarcation Protocol.

On November 18, 2009, the signing ceremony of China-Vietnam land board demarcation documents was held in Beijing, marking the completion of land border demarcation between China and Vietnam after 10 years of efforts of both countries. The two sides signed the China-Vietnam Land Border Demarcation Protocol and its appendix map, the China-Vietnam Land Border Management System Agreement and the China-Vietnam Land Border Port and Management System Agreement.

Global Times