JAKARTA - ASEAN has historically been able to demonstrate resilience in facing challenges in the region, said Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono, while attending the ASEAN Foreign Minister's Meeting (ASEAN Foreign Minister's Meeting) which took place in Cebu, Philippines on Wednesday.
The ASEAN Foreign Minister's Meeting, which was held this time around when the world was affected by the global crisis, especially in the Middle East.
Speaking before the ASEAN Foreign Ministers and the ASEAN Secretary-General, Foreign Minister Sugiono said "ASEAN resilience has once again been tested by the ripple effect of the conflict in the Middle East."
"Historically, ASEAN has been able to demonstrate resilience in responding to challenges in the region," said Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono in his statement during the meeting, quoted from the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Thursday (7/5).
Foreign Minister Sugiono on this occasion appreciated and praised the Philippine Foreign Minister Theresa P. Lazaro "for her leadership in coordinating ASEAN's timely response to this evolving situation."
The ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting was held as part of the 48th ASEAN Summit and related meetings.
Last week, the Director General of ASEAN Cooperation, the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Ina Hagniningtyas Krisnamurthi explained that this time's summit, which carries the theme "Navigating Our Future Together", will be different from the usual event, where there are meetings with business actors, parliament, to young groups.
"This time all of that has been removed and focused on the impact of global conflicts, especially in the Middle East, on the ASEAN region," said Ambassador Ina in a media gathering at the Nusantara Building, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia, Jakarta, Thursday (30/4).
"So the agenda discussed is energy resilience, food security, economic stability throughout the region," continued Ambassador Ina.
In this regard, the Philippines is planning to invite the President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Masato Kanda to attend this summit to provide exposure to the current global economic conditions.
The series of summits this time began on May 6 with the Senior Officials Meeting.
On May 7, the summit has an agenda for a ministerial-level meeting. On the same date, a Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) meeting will also be held in the evening.
Meanwhile, the Plenary and Retreat sessions for ASEAN Leaders were held on May 8.
Spokesperson for the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Yvonne Mewengkang, said in a separate press statement on Thursday that the Philippines, as the host and Chair of ASEAN, invited President Prabowo Subianto to attend the main agenda of the Summit, such as the Plenary and Retreat.
Meanwhile, according to Ambassador Ina, Foreign Minister Sugiono is scheduled to attend four meetings in the upcoming summit, namely the ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting (AMM), the ASEAN Political Security Commmunity (APSC), the ASEAN Coordinating Council (ACC), and the Joint ASEAN Foreign Ministers and ASEAN Economic Ministers Meeting.
Ambassador Ina gave credit to the last forum which was a breakthrough made by the Philippines as the ASEAN Chair.
"This is extraordinary in my opinion, this is the Philippines' effort to respond to the challenges of many parties who criticize ASEAN," said Ambassador Ina.
Yvonne emphasized that Indonesia, as one of the driving forces of ASEAN, has an interest in ensuring that the region remains stable.
Therefore, continued Yvonne, the formulation of a joint response by ASEAN is a priority for the Indonesian Government.
The ASEAN Summit in Cebu is targeted to produce around 24 outcome documents with a main focus on strengthening regional stability and resilience, especially in the field of economic development, said Ambassador Ina.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
