National costumes of asean countries

It would be the first such meeting of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations since the member country’s military ousted the elected government led by Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1.

The Kyodo News Agency quoted sources as saying that most ASEAN countries have expressed readiness to attend the meeting, with Myanmar’s military-appointed Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin also asked to attend.

The meeting is likely to be a hybrid form with some attending in person and others joining virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to one of the sources. An in-person meeting would be held in the Indonesian capital Jakarta, where ASEAN has its secretariat.

In Thailand on February 24, Wunna Maung Lwin arrived in Thailand to hold diplomatic negotiations related to recent political developments in the country. Wunna Maung Lwin’s engaging in the negotiations showed Myanmar’s efforts in cooperating with ASEAN to seek solutions to political issues in the country.

ASEAN comprises 10 member countries. Myanmar joined the association in 1997.

In early February, in a statement, ASEAN called on the sides to seek dialogue and reconciliation to bring the situation back to normal soon.

The statement highlighted the importance of ASEAN member states’ political stability in achieving peace, stability, and prosperity for the ASEAN Community.

The military of Myanmar pledged to hold an election and transfer the power, while rejecting the accusation of conducting coup d’état as well as violence in protests inside the country.

Source: VNA

He made the call while addressing the United Nations General Assembly’s informal meeting on Myanmar held on February 26 under the chair of its President Volkan Bozkir.

Quy underlined that the current developments in Myanmar are harmful to the stability, development and legitimate interests of its people.

He urged stakeholders to exert restraint, avoid escalating tensions and seek dialogues towards satisfying solutions which are in line with the Constitution and the law, as well as people’s aspiration and will.

The Vietnamese Ambassador also noted that the international community needs to support and create the best conditions for the democratic transition process in Myanmar, respect its independence and national sovereignty, and not interfere in countries’ interior affairs.

Safety, humanitarian access and essential services for Myanmar people, especially the vulnerable, are also needed to be ensured, he added.

The diplomat emphasized that Vietnam hopes Myanmar will soon become stable, for the sake of the country’s development, as well as for peace, stability and cooperation in the region and the building of the ASEAN Community.

Vietnam supports the efforts and mediatory role of Special Envoy Burgener, he added, asking her to coordinate with ASEAN in stabilizing the situation in Myanmar.

Regarding ASEAN’s role, Quy affirmed that ASEAN supports Myanmar’s efforts to bring peace, stability and the rule of law; foster harmony and reconciliation and ensure sustainable development.

He informed delegates on the ongoing endeavors of ASEAN in the issue, including the release of a statement by the Chair of ASEAN.

People must always be placed at the center of all dialogues and trust-building measures in Myanmar, Quy stated.

The meeting was attended by UN Special Envoy on Myanmar Christine Schraner Burgener and representatives of 50 members of the UN and eight regional organizations.

For her part, Burgener urged the international community to join hands in easing tensions in the Southeast Asian nation.

Source: VNA

Jakarta (VNA) – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Canada and UN Women recently launched a five-year programme to expand and strengthen women’s leadership and participation in conflict prevention, resolution and recovery in Southeast Asia.

The 8.5 million CAD (6.36 million USD) programme, “Empowering women for sustainable peace: preventing violence and promoting social cohesion in ASEAN”, is funded by Global Affairs Canada to support ASEAN and the implementation of the ASEAN-Canada Plan of Action 2021-2025, with the support of UN Women as a lead UN partner.

“ Canada is proud to launch this flagship initiative that uses the women, peace and security approach to promote inclusive and sustainable peace and security in the region, while addressing the systemic gender inequality,” said Diedrah Kelly, Canada’s Ambassador to ASEAN .

ASEAN has made important strides to advance women, peace and security agenda, including the adoption of the first ‘Joint Statement on Promoting Women, Peace and Security in ASEAN’ in 2017, the launch of the ASEAN Women’s Peace Registry in 2018, and convening the first ASEAN Symposium on Women, Peace and Security in 2019 and the ASEAN Ministerial Dialogue on Strengthening Women’s role for Sustainable Peace and Security in 2020.

Secretary-General of ASEAN Dato Lim Jock Hoi said, “ASEAN is working concertedly to advance women, peace and security agenda across the three ASEAN Community Pillars as part of our commitment to promote gender equality and the roles of women in the implementation of the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework.”

The COVID-19 impact has increased the risks for women and girls in fragile and conflict-affected contexts and this challenges us to re-examine threats to human security. “The pandemic highlights the important linkage between peace, humanitarian and development and the critical need for women’s leadership and participation to ensure effective and comprehensive response, from policy decision-making to peace building and pandemic response,” said Jamshed Kazi, UN Women Representative and Liaison to ASEAN.

The new programme reflects the commitment of ASEAN and Canada to promote gender equality and to respond to an increasingly widespread call across the globe for women to be empowered to lead and participate in peace and development.

ASEAN includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam./.

VNA

Jakarta (VNA) – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has held a workshop on the Development Prospects for the ASEAN Minerals Cooperation (DPAMC) and Scoping Study of the ASEAN Minerals Database and Information System (AMDIS), aiming to promote regional minerals cooperation.

During the two-day workshop, participants discussed the initial findings and recommendations from the drafts of the DPAMC Study and the AMDIS Scoping Report under the “Strengthening ASEAN Cooperation in Minerals” project.

The DPAMC Study will stock-take existing ASEAN minerals development and cooperation in the context of global markets and minerals industry, and propose corresponding regional strategies and measures.

The study’s recommendations are expected to help define the future direction of ASEAN minerals cooperation and will be considered in the development of Phase 2 (2021-2025) of the ASEAN Minerals Cooperation Action Plan.

Meanwhile, the development of an effective ASEAN minerals database is crucial to minerals cooperation which includes facilitating much needed investment into minerals exploration and development in the region. AMDIS Scoping Study’s recommendations are expected to be considered in the enhancement of the current system.

Both project components aim to promote economic activities in the post-COVID-19 period, as well as ASEAN’s efforts to respond to the challenges and opportunities of a more minerals-intensive future.

The project is a collaboration between the Energy and Minerals Division of the ASEAN Secretariat and the ASEAN -Australia Development Cooperation Programme II, along with a team of experts from the University of Queensland. The final reports are expected to be completed by November 2021./.

VNA

This is the first time a ceremony of this kind has been held in the virtual form amid the complicated development of the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia.

On the occasion, the ASEAN Secretary-General again praised the success of Vietnam during the year it held the chairmanship of ASEAN in 2020, especially in leading ASEAN in maintaining solidarity and proactively responding to the complicated developments of the pandemic.

He re-affirmed the important contributions of the Committee of Permanent Representatives (CPR) during the Year of ASEAN Chairmanship 2020, including chairing and participating in the successful negotiation of many documents in the framework of ASEAN cooperation with partners, coordinating inter-pillar issues and strengthening the role and activities of the ASEAN Secretariat.

He expressed his belief that Ambassador Bang, with his experience as a senior diplomat, will make important contribution to the CPR work, thus further consolidating Vietnam’s role and position in ASEAN and ASEAN’s in the international community.

Ambassador Bang reiterated Vietnam’s commitment to realizing the ASEAN Vision 2025 through close coordination with other ASEAN members.

In 2021, Vietnam will serve as chair of the Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) Task Force and Chair of the Board of Trustees of the ASEAN Foundation (AF BOT). The country will end its tenure as coordinator of ASEAN – Japan relations and take over as coordinator of ASEAN – RoK relations for 2021-2024.

Source: VNA

The Hanoitimes – Vietnam said people must always be placed at the center of all dialogues and trust-building measures in Myanmar.

Vietnam’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy has called on international efforts to assist Myanmar’s democratic transition with an aim to ensure the people-centered approach.

Vietnam’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy calls for international support for Myanmar issues. Photo: Vietnam News Agency

The support, including that from ASEAN, needs to respect the independence, sovereignty, and internal affairs of Myanmar while securing humanitarian access and essential services to local people, mostly vulnerable ones, Quy said at the United Nations General Assembly’s informal meeting on Myanmar held on February 26.

He urged stakeholders to exert restraint, avoid escalating tensions and seek dialogues towards satisfying solutions, which are in line with the constitution, laws and people’s aspiration.

He asked UN Special Envoy on Myanmar Christine Schraner Burgener and representatives of 50 members of the UN and eight regional organizations to coordinate with ASEAN in stabilizing the situation in Myanmar.

Kyodo News has reported that Foreign Ministers of ASEAN member states will hold a special meeting on March 2 to discuss the situation in Myanmar.

It would be the first of such meeting of the 10-member bloc since Myanmar’s military declared a state of emergency and detained leaders, including U Win Myint and Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1.

Most ASEAN countries have expressed readiness to attend the meeting, with Myanmar’s military-appointed Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin also asked to attend.

Myanmar has seen an outpouring of anger and defiance from hundreds of thousands of protesters who have gathered to call for Suu Kyi’s release and a return to democracy.

Hundreds of anti-coup protesters who have rallied daily in the country’s largest city against a junta that toppled civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi have been dispersed by police, AFP reported.