ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn grants an interview to the Vietnam News Agency. (Photo: VNA)He made the remarks during a recent interview granted to theVietnam News Agency on the occasion of the 56th anniversary of ASEAN(August 8, 1967 - 2023).
He noted that since it became a member of ASEAN on July 28,1995, Vietnam has played an active, proactive, and responsible role, includingin promoting the admission of new members so as to gather all the mainland andisland Southeast Asian countries in the association.
Vietnam has not only made active contributionsto ASEAN, especially in the building of the ASEAN Community in all the threepillars of politics - security, economy, and society - culture, but also helpedbolster the bloc’s external relations. It has also taken part in all themechanisms set up by ASEAN and established itself as an active and main participantin the drafting of the ASEAN Charter to ensure that this document is the lodestarfor the development of the ASEAN Community, Kao said.
TheSecretary-General said he is impressed with the country’s strong economic andtrade development with its engagement in many bilateral and multilateral freetrade agreements (FTAs).
Vietnamhas created its own imprint on the regional organisation and obtained manysuccesses while holding the rotational Chairmanship of ASEAN in 1998, 2000, and2020. It also has much experience in organising ASEAN activities, acting as acountry coordinator of the bloc’s relations with dialogue partners, and servingin many important roles in global organisations like the UN SecurityCouncil, he went on.
The ASEAN leader expressed his hope that Vietnamwill remain an active and proactive member of ASEAN, suggesting it share itsvaluable experience with regional countries such as in terms of economicdevelopment, human resources quality improvement, community health protection,natural disaster management, diplomacy, and promotion of external partners’engagement.
At thesame time, the country can help with the development of ASEAN in all fields andpillars of the Community, as well as with the development of sub-regions,including the Mekong sub-region, he added.
ASEAN foreign ministers pose for a group photo at their 56th meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, on July 11, 2023. (Photo: VNA)ASEAN, established during the peak periodof the Cold War, is playing a very strong role in the region and the world, holdingthe centrality in the regional architecture, and also has the legal statusthanks to the adoption of the ASEAN Charter in 2008.
With the 10 member states sending their ambassadors or permanent representativesto ASEAN along with the ambassadors of dialogue partners and other countries tothe bloc, it could be said that ASEAN is growing strongly in terms of diplomaticrelations, he noted.
As a community, the association has witnessed increasing people-to-peopleconnectivity and exchanges while citizens of member countries now can travel freelyin the region without the need for visas.
Additionally, the Secretary-Generalnoted, ASEAN has become a single manufacturing hub and market on the basis of itsEconomic Community, which has been expanding and attracting attention oftrading partners. It has signed many bilateral FTAs with partners like Japan,the Republic of Korea (RoK), China, Australia, New Zealand, and India; joinedthe Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP)together with China, Japan, the RoK, Australia, and New Zealand; and isnegotiating an FTA with Canada and discussing the possibility of an FTA withother trade areas like the European Union so as to generate more benefits for citizens.
To operate more efficiently,effectively and responsively and to maintain its unity, solidarity and centrality,ASEAN set up the High-Level Task Force on the ASEAN Community’s Post-2025Vision towards 2045 so as to make recommendations and proposals to besubmitted to regional leaders for approval in 2025, thereby developing ASEANinto a stronger bloc ready to cope with challenges, according to Kao./.
VNA
