Resolution on Political and Security Matters in the Asia-Pacific
24th Annual Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF)
Vancouver, Canada January 17-21, 2016
Resolution on Political and Security Matters in the Asia-Pacific
APPF24/RES/15
(Sponsored by the Russian Federation and Indonesia)
The 24th Annual Meeting of the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum;
Affirming the commitment to the goals and principles of the Charter of the United Nations;
Recalling the APPF Resolution on International Dimensions of Security adopted during the 10th Annual Meeting in Hawaii, USA, which recognizes the increasing challenges of regional security and the need to preserve inter state relations based on mutual respect;
Recalling the APPF Resolution on Review of the Political and Security Situation in the Asia Pacific and the World adopted at the 12th Annual Meeting in Beijing (China), which reaffirms the importance of open and inclusive regional architecture for Asia Pacific security;
Referring to the resolutions on policy and security in Asia-Pacific No. APPF20/RES/5, No. APPF21/RES-01 and No. APPF22/RES-01, respectively adopted at the 20th (Tokyo, Japan, January 2012), 21st (Vladivostok, Russia, January 2013), 22nd (Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, January 2014) Annual Meetings;
Recalling the APPF Resolution No. APPF23/RES/18 on Strengthening Peace and Stability in the Asia Pacific Region, adopted at the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum (Quito, Ecuador, January 2015) that affirms the need to step up practical efforts to build a multipolar world order system to create a secure and adequate configuration of interstate relations in the Asia Pacific region which complies with the modern realities and builds upon the interests of all states;
Noting the APPF New Tokyo Declaration adopted in 2012 that promotes the APPF vision of open and non-exclusive cooperation based on constructive dialogue toward peace, stability and prosperity for the region;
Recognizing the shift in economic and strategic weight to the Asia-Pacific region, which has assumed increasing importance in world affairs, a development that constitutes one of the key vectors of the development of international relations;
Underlining the need to ensure further sustainable and dynamic financial, economic, trade and investment growth of the Asia Pacific region with a view to create decent and favorable living conditions for its peoples;
Understanding the relationship between security and development;
Acknowledging that the continued potential for conflict in the Asia Pacific region could threaten the future stability and prosperity of the region;
Reiterate the Charter of the United Nations, including our mutual respect for independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, and its foundational principles that all states must settle their international disputes by peaceful means, and refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence or any state;
Reaffirming the importance of strengthening cooperation within the frameworks of strong and transparent regional interstate organizations and forums;
Acknowledging the importance of the discussion of the security issues in the framework of the East Asia Summits;
Welcoming the steps taken by the East Asia Summit (EAS) participating countries to promote multilateral Dialogue on Elaborating Security Architecture in the Asia Pacific region launched in accordance with the decision of the 8th East Asia Summit in Brunei in October 2013;
Acknowledging that non-traditional security challenges, such as climate change, resource scarcity, natural and man-made disasters, environmental degradation, the spread of pandemic diseases, the proliferation of nuclear weapons, missiles and related technology; transnational crime; terrorism; trafficking in persons, piracy, and others, have a destabilizing effect on regional and national security;
Underlining that the APPF is an effective platform for a parliamentary dialogue on political and security matters of the Asia Pacific region as well as for strengthening trust and understanding between the peoples of the member countries;
Emphasizing that parliamentarians can play an effective role in promoting peace and security in the Asia-Pacific region;
RESOLVES TO:
- Confirm the importance of inter-state cooperation within the framework of regional organizations and forums in the Asia Pacific, which should be based on, and work to promote, the rules and principles of international law, including the peaceful settlement of disputes, mutual respect for independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, and opposition to the use of intimidation, coercion and force between and among states;
- Encourage parties involved in territorial disputes to continue in exercising self-restraint and non-use of force; and the peaceful resolution of disputes, in accordance with universally recognized principles of International Law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS);
- Acknowledge the importance of ensuring synergy and harmonization between the existing national initiatives in the field of maintaining peace and stability with a view to elaborate an integrated approach of the countries of the region to the future system of comprehensive security and sustainable development in the Asia-Pacific region;
- Call upon APPF Member States to promote the formation in the Asia-Pacific of an extensive network of partner relations among multilateral regional unions;
- Support the efforts aimed to further enhance the regional economic integration, including within the forum of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) that will promote the prosperity and sustainability of economies of the region and will contribute to global stability, including food, water and energy security;
- Call upon APPF Member States to strengthen cooperation aimed at implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;
- Affirm the importance of respect and understanding of the cultural and religious diversity and of promotion of tolerance, dialogue and cooperation among various cultures, civilizations and peoples;
- Emphasize the importance of the consolidation of international cooperation in the area of mitigation of natural disaster risks in order to reduce the vulnerability of the APPF Member States in the face of natural and man made disasters and to enhance peoples' capacities to withstand natural disasters and to eliminate their effects using their own resources;
- Reaffirm that the common efforts of the parliamentarians of the APPF Member States in the area of politics and security can help to strengthen peace, development and prosperity in the Asia Pacific region.
