The 2015 ASEAN joint statement on climate change was adopted by participants of the 13th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on the Environment, which wrapped up on October 29 in Hanoi.
Approving the joint statement on climate change was one of the major aims of the 13th AMME.
The statement is scheduled to be submitted at the 27th ASEAN Summit held in Malaysia in November and presented at the 21st Conference of Parties held in Paris in December.
It was released on October 29 at the press conference held by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, which hosted the meeting.
ASEAN Secretary-General Le Luong Minh said at the press conference that the joint statement outlines 17 sustainable development goals that were adopted at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit on September 25.
Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha said the joint statement was expected to be presented at the 21st Conference of Parties by Malaysia, the chair of ASEAN, after receiving the green light at the 27th ASEAN Summit.
The joint statement reaffirmed previous statements by ASEAN on climate change and aligns with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Ha said.
Via the joint statement, ASEAN members expressed hopes that the UNFCCC be made aware that ASEAN countries are suffering from climate change, he said.
The 14th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on the Environment is set to take place in Brunei in 2017.-VNA