Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (fourth from the left) and other ASEAN leaders at a retreat session of the 42nd ASEAN Summit in Labuan Bajo, Indonesia on May 10. (Photo: VNA)Kuala Lumpur (VNA)- The member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN),including Vietnam, are actively implementing the three pillars of the ASEANCommunity to stabilise security and overcome regional challenges, said a Malaysianexpert.
In an interview granted to the VietnamNews Agency on the occasion of the 56th anniversary of the ASEAN (August8, 1967 - 2023), Associate Professor Dr. Awang Azman Bin Awang Pawi from the Universiti Malaya, also highlighted some specific achievements in the efforts to build the ASEAN Community, including the principle ofcooperation; ASEAN's an active,proactive and flexible role in preventing conflicts in the region; and the attainment of trade liberalisation.
As for the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community, the bloc is implementing an initiative on intra-regional educational cooperationexchanges to ensure human resources as well asthe quality of education and training of countries, according to the expert.
Associate Professor Dr. Awang Azman Bin Awang Pawi from the Universiti Malaya, Malaysia. (Photo: VNA)According to Awang, this helps preservethe cultural and economic achievements of each country in the region as well as tell their residentsabout the history. It also offers chances for exchangein terms of job opportunities and intensive research programmes to diversifythe development of young human resources.
He emphasised that the three pillars willopen up a lot of opportunities for development and cooperation, but also posemany challenges for each country.
It is important that ASEAN countries willalways respect and accompany each other on the path of economic development andstrengthening ASEAN's position in the world arena, he noted./.
