ASEAN SOM talks Vision 2045, Timor-Leste entry, nuke-free zone
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia hosted the ASEAN Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM) and Related Meetings on Tuesday (April 29) in Kuala Lumpur, according to the country's Foreign Ministry.
Three senior official-level meetings were convened, namely the ASEAN SOM, Meeting of the Executive Committee of the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ ExCom), and the 18th ASEAN Coordinating Council Working Group on Timor-Leste's Application for ASEAN Membership (ACCWG-TL).
The meetings were chaired by the secretary-general of the Foreign Ministry, Datuk Seri Amran Mohamed Zin, in his capacity as the SOM Leader of Malaysia.
'As a regional bloc that maintains collaboration on shared interests, all discussions at the ASEAN SOM meetings were centred on ensuring comprehensive and forward-looking approaches for a more prosperous, peaceful and secure ASEAN region.
'The SOM Meeting discussed ASEAN's efforts towards strengthening ASEAN Community building, including the ASEAN Community Vision 2045, scheduled to be adopted at the 46th ASEAN Summit on May 26, 2025,' said the ministry, widely known as Wisma Putra, in a statement on Tuesday.
In this connection, Wisma Putra stated that the SOM congratulated and expressed appreciation to the High-Level Task Force for completing the task of developing and finalising the ASEAN Community Vision 2045, as well as supporting strategic plans in the areas of political security, economy, social culture, and connectivity.
The meeting also discussed the progress in implementing the Roadmap for Timor-Leste's full membership in ASEAN, the application of external parties to accede to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC), and ASEAN's external relations.
The ACCWG-TL focused on ASEAN's continued efforts to advance Timor-Leste's full membership in ASEAN.
The discussions reviewed the progress in implementing the Roadmap for Timor-Leste's accession, strengthened capacity-building initiatives for Timor-Leste officials, and the establishment of the Timor-Leste Unit within the ASEAN Secretariat.
'Malaysia remained dedicated to working closely with ASEAN Member States and Timor-Leste to further advance the accession process in fostering regional unity and integration,' said Wisma Putra.
Meanwhile, the SOM and SEANWFZ ExCom meetings involved the participation of SOM leaders from ASEAN Member States.
The SEANWFZ ExCom meeting focused on ASEAN's continued efforts to advance global disarmament and non-proliferation, including the longstanding goal of securing the accession of Nuclear-Weapon States to the SEANWFZ Protocol, thereby strengthening both the Treaty's legal standing and ASEAN's leadership in promoting a nuclear-weapon-free region.
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