JABAT EKSPRES – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has officially joined Serbia, Panama, and Kuwait as friends who are expected to support stability and peace in the region.
The three countries officially became friends of ASEAN after signing the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC) on the sidelines of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting in Jakarta, Monday (9/4).
Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, who witnessed the signing, said that more countries have signed the accession to the TAC, reflecting the growing positive enthusiasm for ASEAN.
“The TAC should unite ASEAN and its dialogue partners to forge practical cooperation in addressing common challenges, ranging from climate change, food and energy security, to transnational organized crime,” Retno said.
Read more: Indonesian Embassy in Pretoria, ITPC Facilitate Promotion of Beauty Products in South Africa
Retno said the values and principles of the TAC play an important role in ensuring that ASEAN is important and a center of growth.
Panama’s Deputy Foreign Minister Vladimir Franco said the signing of his country’s accession to the ASEAN TAC marked a significant step towards creating a strategic partnership based on the principles of peace, cooperation, and common development in the region.
“For us, this will provide opportunities to expand access to Asian and regional markets and the possibility of increasing our exports,” Franco said.
Meanwhile, Kuwaiti Deputy Foreign Minister Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah hoped Kuwait’s signing of the treaty would accelerate the pace of cooperation between the Cooperation Council for Arab States in the Gulf Region (GCC) and ASEAN.
With the inclusion of Serbia, Panama, Kuwait, there are now 54 countries that are signatories to the ASEAN TAC. Saudi Arabia was previously the 51st country to accede to the treaty at the ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting in Jakarta in July.
The Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation is a cooperation and non-aggression pact between ASEAN countries and their partners outside the region.
