Will Paracels dispute overshadow China and Vietnam’s drive for stronger strategic ties?

China and Vietnam are to hold their first high-level ministerial talks under a new platform next week.This comes as the neighbours seek to cement their strategic alignment despite heightened tensions over Beijing’s purported new land reclamation work in the disputed China-sea" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="8346" data-entity-type="location">South China Sea.According to the Chinese foreign ministry, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Public Security Minister Wang Xiaohong and Defence Minister Dong Jun will be in Vietnam from Sunday to Tuesday to meet their respective counterparts.The talks would mark the first ministerial meeting of the China-Vietnam “3+3” strategic dialogue on diplomacy, defence and public security, foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said on Friday.The 3+3 format was announced last April, when President Xi Jinping met Vietnamese leader To Lam in Hanoi.China has previously used a similar mechanism – featuring foreign and defence officials – for talks with neighbours such as South Korea and Indonesia.