JAKARTA: The first meeting of Asean and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) foreign ministers is scheduled to take place this September in New York in conjunction with the United Nations General Assembly, said Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir.
“Apart from the meeting schedule, preparations for the Asean-GCC Summit to be held in October 2023 in Riyadh were also discussed,“ he told reporters after a 45-minute bilateral meeting with Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan here.
The meeting with Prince Faisal also touched upon efforts to strengthen the special Malaysia-Saudi Arabia bilateral relationship, Zambry said, adding that Saudi Arabia, as Asean’s new dialogue partner, will promote more effective relations in various sectors.
Saudi Arabia, a member of the GCC, became the 51st country to sign the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC) with Asean, and Malaysia serves as the coordinating country for Asean-GCC relations.
At today’s 56th Asean Foreign Ministers conference, Prince Faisal signed documents witnessed by Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi.
Through the TAC, Saudi Arabia is committed to cooperating and collaborating, upholding international law, and contributing towards peace and stability in Southeast Asia.
Meanwhile, Zambry also had an extensive discussion at the two events earlier, namely the East Asia Summit (EAS) in 2023 and the Asean Regional Forum (ARF).
On EAS, he emphasised the need to enhance cooperation in the nine priority areas of cooperation as well as finalising the EAS Plan of Action 2024-2028.
He further highlighted the need to explore new areas of cooperation that would increase economic growth and assist in the alleviation of poverty in the region.
On the future direction of the ARF, Zambry recommended that the ARF transition from confidence-building measures into preventive diplomacy in light of ongoing and heightening geopolitical tensions, in ensuring the maintenance of peace, prosperity, and stability in the region. –Bernama
