PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia as chairman of ASEAN next year will ensure that the regional bloc, which was established in 1967, based on a free, peaceful and neutral zone will be maintained, said Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.
Speaking to reporters after launching the ASEAN-Malaysia Chairmanship 2025 logo and theme at Wisma Putra here Tuesday, he said the bloc’s sovereignty is “something that is very strong”.
“Many people are envious of us and they want to break us. So, that’s something we have to defend,“ he said.
According to Mohamad, Malaysia wants to ensure the sustainability of ASEAN through the launch of the ASEAN Community 2025-2045.
He said a period of 20 years was needed to create an integrated framework based on the unity of ASEAN-member countries and to boost the sustainability of the bloc in terms of economy and diversity, especially in an age full of challenges, such as climate change and so on.
That is what Malaysia will do after taking over the ASEAN chairmanship.
Present at the ceremony were Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry, Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz (Coordinating Minister for ASEAN Economic Pillar); Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing (Coordinating Minister for ASEAN Socio-Cultural Pillar), and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Datuk Mohamad Alamin.
Also in attendance were senior government officials, Foreign Heads of Mission to Malaysia and representatives of international organisations as well as media representatives.
During the ASEAN Summit in Laos, there was an agreement among member countries to lead ASEAN to a higher level, said Mohamad.
Meanwhile, when asked about Timor-Leste’s full membership in ASEAN, he said the matter is still at the Senior Officers’ Meeting (SOM) level, and not on the agenda of the ASEAN meeting.
He said efforts to make the country a full member are being accelerated and Malaysia wants the process involving documentation for Timor-Leste’s membership to be simplified.
“Timor-Leste has been an observer state for several years. Efforts to make Timor-Leste a full member of ASEAN are indeed underway.
“A lot of documentation needs to be done, but most are economic based and we have asked the economic pillar to see and study whether we can shorten the list of requirements.
“We should consider allowing Timor-Leste to become a member earlier,” he said, adding that Timor-Leste’s membership would add value to the bloc.
Currently, Timor-Leste is still waiting for the consensus decision of the ASEAN-member countries to be accepted as a full member.
Timor-Leste’s participation in ASEAN is a process that began after the country’s independence in 2002.
Timor-Leste was recognised as an ASEAN observer and joined the ASEAN Regional Forum in 2005 before officially applying for membership on March 4, 2011.
In 2022, ASEAN leaders gathered at the 40th and 41st ASEAN Summits and Related Summits in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and agreed in principle for Timor-Leste to become the group’s 11th member.
