Foreign Minister Retno: The People's Eyes Are On Us to Prove ASEAN is Still Important and Can Contribute

Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi. (Source: Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

JAKARTA - Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi said that the difficulties and challenges faced in the Southeast Asia region should not affect ASEAN's hard work in proving its role and contribution to the region, at the opening of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting (AMM) in Jakarta, Monday.

In her opening speech, Foreign Minister Retno said, despite being aware of the many difficult situations in the Southeast Asian region. However, this should not affect the hard work at the 43 ASEAN Summit which will be opened tomorrow.

"There is only one thing we can do to ensure that this summit produces the expected results," said Foreign Minister Retno in a written statement from the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Monday, September 4.

"The eyes of our people are on us to prove that ASEAN is still important and can contribute to peace, stability and prosperity in this region," she stressed.

He further said that over the last nine months hard work has continued to be carried out to make progress in efforts to develop the ASEAN community.

"We have prepared a strong foundation towards the 2045 ASEAN Community Vision in the ASEAN Concord IV," said Foreign Minister Retno.

"We continue to lead the way in shaping regional dynamics and ensuring a peaceful and inclusive Indo-Pacific region," she continued.

"We see more and more countries acceding to the TAC (Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia) and becoming ASEAN partners," she stressed.

Foreign Minister Retno added that today the establishment of Secretariat-to-Secretariat cooperation between ASEAN and IORA (Indian Ocean Rim Association) and PIF (Pacific Island Forum) will also be realized.

According to her, this shows the strength of the ASEAN meeting and the broad acceptance of ASEAN norms and values.

"However, we still have some homework to complete, including the situation in Myanmar," said Foreign Minister Retno.

"Our chairmanship has worked hard to push for a united ASEAN solution. ASEAN can only move forward with full strength, if we can ensure a peaceful and lasting solution in Myanmar," she stressed.

She added, "In accordance with the mandate of the Leaders, we will conduct a comprehensive review of the implementation of the 5PC (Five Point Consensus) and prepare recommendations for the Leaders' deliberations."

It is known that the ASEAN Summit taking place in Jakarta this week is planned to be attended by delegates from 22 countries and nine international organizations. Apart from the 11 ASEAN countries, there will also be nine delegations from partner countries from South Korea, Japan, India, China, Australia, Canada, Russia, New Zealand and the United States. As well as the two invited countries, namely Bangladesh as Chair of IORA and Cook Islands as Chair of PIF.

A number of names scheduled to attend include US Vice President Kamala Harris, Chinese PM Li Qiang, Japanese PM Fumio Kishida, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol. Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin was represented by Foreign Minister Sergei Shoigu.