Singapore (VNA) – Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong held talks with his counterpart from Timor Leste Taur Matan Ruak in Singapore on February 15, during which the host affirmed that his country supports Timor Leste’s process to join ASEAN.
PM Lee expressed his expectation that Timor Leste officials will participate in the courses under the "Singapore - Timor Leste ASEAN Readiness Support" (STARS) package.
The two leaders reaffirmed the sound relations between the two countries and discussed measures to further promote their bilateral ties in the time to come.
Immediately after becoming an independent country in 2002, Timor Leste began the process of regional integration. In March 2011, it officially applied to join ASEAN and was granted observer status in 2015.
At the ASEAN Summits in November 2022, the association issued a statement affirming the in-principle admission of Timor-Leste as the 11th member of ASEAN, and allowing its participation in all ASEAN meetings including at the Summit plenaries, while formalising an objective criteria-based roadmap for Timor-Leste's full membership including based on the milestones identified in the reports of the fact-finding missions conducted by the three ASEAN Community pillars.
Meanwhile, President of Timor Leste José Ramos-Horta once expressed hope that the country can become the 11th member of ASEAN by 2023. Singapore has pledged to support Timor Leste's engagement in the association.
Currently, ASEAN groups 10 member nations, namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam./.
PM Lee expressed his expectation that Timor Leste officials will participate in the courses under the "Singapore - Timor Leste ASEAN Readiness Support" (STARS) package.
The two leaders reaffirmed the sound relations between the two countries and discussed measures to further promote their bilateral ties in the time to come.
Immediately after becoming an independent country in 2002, Timor Leste began the process of regional integration. In March 2011, it officially applied to join ASEAN and was granted observer status in 2015.
At the ASEAN Summits in November 2022, the association issued a statement affirming the in-principle admission of Timor-Leste as the 11th member of ASEAN, and allowing its participation in all ASEAN meetings including at the Summit plenaries, while formalising an objective criteria-based roadmap for Timor-Leste's full membership including based on the milestones identified in the reports of the fact-finding missions conducted by the three ASEAN Community pillars.
Meanwhile, President of Timor Leste José Ramos-Horta once expressed hope that the country can become the 11th member of ASEAN by 2023. Singapore has pledged to support Timor Leste's engagement in the association.
Currently, ASEAN groups 10 member nations, namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam./.
VNA
