Philippines Expects Timor-Leste’s Membership to be Among Issues Raised at 46th ASEAN Summit
By Amanina Mohamad Yusof and Muhammad Adil Muzaffar Mohd Fisol
SEPANG (Selangor, Malaysia), May 23 (Bernama) -- The Philippines expects that discussions on the revitalisation of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the roadmap for Timor-Leste’s full membership in ASEAN, and the conflict in Myanmar will be put forth during the 46th ASEAN Summit.
Its Undersecretary of Bilateral Relations and ASEAN Affairs at the Department of Foreign Affairs, Ma Theressa P. Lazaro, said the Philippines believes the summit would bring about progress towards admitting Timor-Leste into ASEAN, albeit acknowledging that ongoing technical issues remains a challenge to be addressed.
“I think there's just some technical problems along the way, and I think this is some kind of a deliverable by Malaysia for Timor-Leste. … (which is to) discuss fully on all the technicalities,” she told Bernama upon arriving at Kuala Lumpur International Airport Terminal 1.
Timor-Leste has sought to join ASEAN since 2011, with the association assisting the country in meeting membership requirements.
At the 40th and 41st ASEAN Summits in November 2022, the regional bloc agreed in principle to admit Timor-Leste as its 11th member, contingent upon fulfilling the criteria outlined in the Full Membership Roadmap.
Lazaro said her country also believes this summit would amplify the regional and Malaysia’s active diplomatic role in resolving the ongoing armed and political conflict in Myanmar.
“I think definitely (the situation in) Myanmar is a very important issue, considering that your prime minister (Anwar Ibrahim) has been doing a lot of work on this matter, .. I think your special envoy is doing an excellent job too (on Myanmar matters),” she said.
Myanmar’s crisis began with a military coup in February 2021, overthrowing the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.
The junta’s violent crackdown on protests triggered widespread armed resistance, plunging the country into a civil war that has displaced over millions of people and devastated the economy.
ASEAN has struggled to mediate peace, but recent efforts signal a possible shift, with talks proposed between the junta and the ousted government amid continued fighting.
Lazaro also expressed Philippines’ strong support for Malaysia’s leadership as ASEAN Chairmanship this year, and its role in steering the regional bloc forward.
She praised Malaysia’s handling of regional issues and its direction during the ongoing high-level discussions and hopes to emulate this success during the Philippines’ upcoming chairmanship.
“I think Malaysia is doing a very good job, and the fact that we're in full force to participate is because Malaysia has the leadership; definitely, your Prime Minister (Anwar Ibrahim) has been doing an excellent job.
“And of course, ASEAN is us; and that's the fact, that we're the incoming chair, so whatever that has been built upon by Malaysia now during its chairmanship is something that we would like to follow and build on,” she added.
-- BERNAMA
