The United States and Vietnam held the fourth annual Political, Security and Defense Dialogue in Washington Friday to discuss bilateral and regional security issues.

The U.S. State Department said the dialogue was attended by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Andrew Shapiro and Vietnamese Standing Vice Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh.

The State Department said the talks reflected heightened cooperation between the two nations based on friendship, mutual respect, and shared commitments to ensure a peaceful, stable, prosperous and secure Asia Pacific region.

It said the participants discussed measures to further strengthen cooperation in areas such as nonproliferation, counterterrorism, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, as well as other areas of defense and security cooperation.

The talks also centered on shared interests in working toward a strategic partnership and recent developments in the South China Sea. The two sides agreed that all territorial disputes in the region should be resolved peacefully, without coercion or the use of force.

The fifth Dialogue will take place in Hanoi next year.