BERNAMA – Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship Showcases Decisive Action On Regional Crises

CYBERJAYA, Aug 8 (Bernama) — ASEAN has demonstrated its capacity to act decisively under Malaysia’s current Chairmanship, said Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

Citing efforts to address the Thailand-Cambodia border dispute, he said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s bold initiative had resulted in a brokered ceasefire and the planned deployment of an interim monitoring team.

“When tensions flared between our neighbours, Malaysia, as ASEAN Chair, convened both parties in Putrajaya and helped broker a ceasefire, one that is being actively implemented, monitored and backed by ASEAN.

“Thank you, Prime Minister, for your bold initiative to put the two leaders of Thailand and Cambodia together,” he said in his speech at the 58th ASEAN Day celebration here today, which was graced by Anwar.

Also present were Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing, Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul and Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar.

Mohamad said Thailand and Cambodia have agreed on the ceasefire terms and an interim monitoring team will be established.

“This was more than a diplomatic exercise. It was a demonstration of ASEAN’s ability to act and its value as a platform,” he added.

On the Myanmar conflict, Mohamad said ASEAN had pursued principled yet practical crisis management, ranging from humanitarian engagement and calls for an expanded ceasefire, to proposing a permanent Special Envoy to handle the protracted crisis.

“We are focused on restoring credibility to the Five-Point Consensus and supporting the people of Myanmar in their time of need,” he added.

Mohamad said over the past 58 years, with each new member state and dialogue partner, ASEAN has evolved into an organisation like no other, setting a new standard for diversity in global governance.

For Malaysia, he said ASEAN has always been central to the region’s engagement with the world, grounded in consensus and shared purpose and committed to building an inclusive and sustainable Southeast Asia.

“As we advance through the second half of our Chairmanship, I am proud to see ASEAN adapting to the challenges of our time.

“The ASEAN Community Vision 2045 – our shared blueprint for the next 20 years – charts a path toward a more resilient, innovative and people-centred region,” he said.

Regarding the creation of ASEAN, Mohamad said the world was fractured by superpower competition in the 1960s.

He said among the trampling feet of giants, the smaller, newly independent states, emerging from the dust of World War II, were extremely vulnerable.

“In such times, it was a visionary act for the five Southeast Asian nations of Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand to gather in Bangkok and pledge to navigate this world together.

“Thus, ASEAN was born into a fragile, wartorn world. It was an experiment in peacemaking and minilateralism,” he added.

ASEAN Day is celebrated annually on Aug 8 to commemorate the inception of ASEAN in 1967 when Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand signed the ASEAN Declaration (Bangkok Declaration).

— BERNAMA 

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