Marcos hails ‘success’ at 42nd ASEAN Summit
Credit to Author: Alexis Romero| Date: Fri, 12 May 2023 00:00:00 +0800
MANILA, Philippines — President Marcos arrived yesterday from his three-day visit to Indonesia, describing the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit as a “success” and expressing his readiness to continue engaging with fellow leaders in the region to achieve their common goals.
“I believe that the summit was a success and that it charted new directions that were initiated by the chairman, (Indonesian) President (Joko) Widodo, and with the concurrence of all the member states,” the President said in a speech delivered at Villamor Air Base.
“And many new ideas were ventilated and many of those were adopted and we will see – hopefully see some progress on the political front and certainly on the economic front,” he added.
Marcos said he is looking forward to continuing working with Indonesia and other ASEAN member states as well as the regional bloc’s external partners for the 42nd ASEAN Summit and Related Summits that will take place in September in Jakarta.
“We will meet to advance our shared goals for a peaceful, secure, and more prosperous region,” the Chief Executive said.
Marcos also provided the highlights of the summit, which was held at the harbor town of Labuan Bajo from May 10 to 11. He said he had highlighted the importance of upholding the international rules-based system that has underpinned regional security, peace and order in the region during his meetings with fellow ASEAN leaders.
The President also reaffirmed the country’s commitment to the principles of free trade and the multilateral trading system and pushed for enhanced support for “nano” businesses, micro, small and medium enterprises, and their integration into the global economy.
He also urged Myanmar to adhere to the Five-Point Consensus and expressed support for Indonesia’s enhanced initiatives in its implementation. “We also came to an agreement that we would adjust our approach on the situation in Myanmar and to try to engage Myanmar at every level and to all the political factions that are active and are involved in that crisis situation in Myanmar,” he said.
The Philippine leader also called for support to Timor-Leste’s efforts toward full ASEAN membership, viewing it as “just a matter of time” as the Southeast Asian country had attended the summit as an observer.
Marcos also joined the leaders’ interfaces with the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly and representatives from the ASEAN Business Advisory Council, ASEAN Youth, and the High-Level Task Force on the ASEAN Community Post-2025 Vision.
“I encouraged also our ASEAN’s external partners to increase their levels of engagement in the BIMP-EAGA, which is a joint aggrupation of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines, and to support its role – the BIMP-EAGA’s role – as a major catalyst in galvanizing economic development and enhancing connectivity in this vibrant sub-region,” he added.