US Secretary of State John Kerry has paid a courtesy call onSecretary-General of ASEAN Le Luong Minh to underline the importance ofUS engagement with ASEAN.
According to the website of theAssociation of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Kerry on February 16visited the ASEAN headquarters in Jakarta where he engaged Minh andother senior ASEAN Secretariat officials in discussions on bilateralrelations and other regional issues of mutual interest and concern.
Minh expressed his appreciation to the US for itscontinued support for ASEAN Community building efforts as well as thegrouping’s centrality and unity. Citing the US as one of the mostimportant major partners of ASEAN, the Secretary-General stressed thatthe support and assistance by the US have effectively complementedASEAN’s efforts to achieve the target of establishing its community by2015.
Placing ASEAN at the core of US rebalancing strategy inthe region, Kerry reiterated the US’s current policy toward SoutheastAsia and its commitment to enhance cooperation with ASEAN in the fieldsof trade and investment, education, narrowing the development gaps,climate change and disaster management, connectivity, and support forMyanmar’s chairmanship of ASEAN.
Kerry also informed Minh thatPresident Obama is looking forward to attending the Second ASEAN-USSummit later this year in Myanmar.
The two officialsexchanged views on issues of regional and international concern, including the issue of the East Sea in the context of complicateddevelopments taking place, while emphasising the need for respect forinternational law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law ofthe Sea (UNCLOS). They reaffirmed the importance of ASEAN’s Six-PointPrinciples on the East Sea, the urgency of early conclusion of aCode of Conduct (COC) and the importance of exercising self-restraint.
The US Secretary of State was in Jakarta as part of hisAsian tour to meet senior government officials and address a range ofbilateral, regional, and global issues relevant to US enhancedengagement in the Asia-Pacific region. Last year, he attended the FirstASEAN-US Summit in Brunei representing President Barack Obama.
The United States has been a Dialogue Partner of ASEAN since 1977.Both sides have maintained active cooperation in areas such as tradeand investment, regional security, disaster management, education, andgovernance.-VNA
According to the website of theAssociation of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Kerry on February 16visited the ASEAN headquarters in Jakarta where he engaged Minh andother senior ASEAN Secretariat officials in discussions on bilateralrelations and other regional issues of mutual interest and concern.
Minh expressed his appreciation to the US for itscontinued support for ASEAN Community building efforts as well as thegrouping’s centrality and unity. Citing the US as one of the mostimportant major partners of ASEAN, the Secretary-General stressed thatthe support and assistance by the US have effectively complementedASEAN’s efforts to achieve the target of establishing its community by2015.
Placing ASEAN at the core of US rebalancing strategy inthe region, Kerry reiterated the US’s current policy toward SoutheastAsia and its commitment to enhance cooperation with ASEAN in the fieldsof trade and investment, education, narrowing the development gaps,climate change and disaster management, connectivity, and support forMyanmar’s chairmanship of ASEAN.
Kerry also informed Minh thatPresident Obama is looking forward to attending the Second ASEAN-USSummit later this year in Myanmar.
The two officialsexchanged views on issues of regional and international concern, including the issue of the East Sea in the context of complicateddevelopments taking place, while emphasising the need for respect forinternational law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law ofthe Sea (UNCLOS). They reaffirmed the importance of ASEAN’s Six-PointPrinciples on the East Sea, the urgency of early conclusion of aCode of Conduct (COC) and the importance of exercising self-restraint.
The US Secretary of State was in Jakarta as part of hisAsian tour to meet senior government officials and address a range ofbilateral, regional, and global issues relevant to US enhancedengagement in the Asia-Pacific region. Last year, he attended the FirstASEAN-US Summit in Brunei representing President Barack Obama.
The United States has been a Dialogue Partner of ASEAN since 1977.Both sides have maintained active cooperation in areas such as tradeand investment, regional security, disaster management, education, andgovernance.-VNA
