Timor-Leste's participation in Asean meetings has surged - Asean sec-gen

New Straits Times

25-05-2025

KUALA LUMPUR: Timor-Leste is steadily carving its place in the Asean family, with several milestones already achieved under the official roadmap, said Asean Secretary-General Dr Kao Kim Hourn today.
Citing stronger participation in Asean processes as a key indicator, Kao noted that Timor-Leste's engagement in Asean meetings has significantly increased this year.
"In the first quarter of this year, Timor-Leste attended about 90 per cent of Asean meetings, compared to 83 per cent last year.
"That's a big jump," he said during a media interview held in conjunction with the 46th Asean Summit here.
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Kao is leading the Asean Secretariat delegation to participate in the summit as well as the 2nd Asean-Gulf Cooperation Council (Asean-GCC) Summit and inaugural Asean-GCC-China Summit held on May 26-27.
He said Asean leaders are expected to further deliberate on Timor-Leste's membership bid during their meeting tomorrow, which Malaysia is hosting as the 2025 Asean Chair.
On the concrete steps taken, Kao highlighted the establishment of a dedicated Asean state coordination unit within Timor-Leste's government, a move aimed at aligning the country's internal structure with Asean mechanisms.
"This is the kind of progress I'm talking about," he said.
Asean partners here to attend the summit also discussed these developments, evaluating Timor-Leste's implementation of the membership roadmap, which was endorsed at the 42nd Asean Summit in Labuan Bajo, Indonesia, in 2023.
One major factor that could shape the timeline for Timor-Leste's accession is the anticipated adoption of the Asean Community Vision 2045 and its four strategic plans, which are expected to be endorsed during this summit, he said.
The bloc's current community blueprints are due to expire by the end of this year, with the Asean Vision 2045 set to guide the region's direction from 2026 onwards.
"This is a very important factor. But, of course, the decision of the Asean member states on when Timor-Leste will become a full member is entirely up to them," Kao said.
Timor-Leste's Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Minister Bendito dos Santos Freitas has expressed confidence that full membership could be achieved as early as this year.
Timor-Leste was granted observer status in 2022, marking its first official step into the Asean framework.