Leaders from 10 ASEAN member states have expressed high determination to realise the ASEAN Community later this year, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak told a press conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on April 27.

During the 26th ASEAN Summit’s plenary session, they focused discussions on the advent of the ASEAN Community, the post-2015 ASEAN Community Vision, and the ASEAN’s external relations and future orientations.

Najib Razak said the ASEAN Community is to come into being amid the positive regional developments and driven by buoyant economic growth, favourable demographics, increased regional integration and the regional network of free trade agreements, adding that the ‘people-centredness’ must continue to be ASEAN’s central ethos in the years to come.

Hailing ASEAN Secretary General Le Luong Minh’s report on the progress of the Agenda for the ASEAN Community, participants recognised the central role of the bloc - a pillar of the evolving regional architecture.

However, he also mentioned differences of opinion on a proposed common time zone in the region, saying that this will be up for agenda in the next ASEAN Summit.

Regarding the East Sea issue, the Malaysian PM underscored the significance of the peaceful settlement of disputes in line with international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

As part of the Summit, the ASEAN leaders also attended meetings of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Council, the ASEAN Business Advisory Council, and representatives of the ASEAN youth and social-civil organisations.

The April 26-27 ASEAN Summit convened its opening ceremony and plenary session in Kuala Lumpur while the retreat session and closing ceremony took place on Langkawi island, Kedah state.

Malaysia is the 2015 Chair of the ASEAN, or the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, founded in August 1967 and consisting of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.-VNA