ASEAN, UK commit to enhancing dialogue partnership
Jakarta (VNA) – Senior officials of ASEAN and the UK reaffirmed
commitment to further strengthen ASEAN-UK Dialogue Partnership and deepen mutually
beneficial cooperation at the second ASEAN-UK Senior Officials’ Meeting
(AUKSOM) in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei on June 8.
The meeting was
co-chaired by Johariah Wahab, Permanent
Secretary and SOM Leader of Brunei and Jenny Bates, Director-General,
Indo-Pacific at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office of the UK
and SOM Leader of the UK.
Both
sides exchanged views on the developments in ASEAN and the UK and reviewed bilateral
cooperation across the three pillars of the ASEAN Community. They took note of
the progress made in the implementation of the ASEAN-United Kingdom Plan of
Action (POA) for the 2022-2026 period and looked forward to further enhance the
partnership in areas of mutual interest.
They encouraged bilateral cooperation in the four areas
identified under the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific that is inclusive,
mutually beneficial, and directed towards the stability and prosperity of the
Indo-Pacific region.
ASEAN
welcomed the first ASEAN-UK project to be implemented under the POA entitled “Promoting Women and
Girls’ Education in ASEAN” which
was announced at the 19th Education World Forum in London in May
2023. The UK also introduced its flagship multi-year development programmes to
support the implementation of the POA on girls’ education; economic
integration; women, peace and security; health systems; and climate transition.
The
two sides further discussed ways to deepen the ASEAN-UK collaboration in
areas such as maritime cooperation,
transnational crime, cyber security, trade and investment; micro, small and medium Enterprises (MSMEs);
digital transformation and inclusivity, sustainable development and
decarbonisation, environment and climate change, people-to-people contacts,
education, health, connectivity, narrowing development gap, smart cities and
infrastructure.
Their views on regional and international issues of shared concern
focused on regional economic developments and multilateral
trading system, the importance of maintaining ASEAN’s Centrality in the
evolving regional architecture, the situation in the East Sea, developments in
Myanmar, and the situation in Ukraine./.