Lightning visit strengthens ties with Southeast Asia

Indonesia and the Philippines are the two destinations on the five-day visit of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Chuyến thăm chớp nhoáng thắt chặt quan hệ với Đông Nam Á

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will visit two Southeast Asian countries next month. (Source: SBS)

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will travel to two Southeast Asian nations along with India to meet regional leaders, discuss global challenges and advance Australia's economic, security and climate agenda.

The trip will begin with attendance at the third annual ASEAN-Australia Summit and the 18th East Asia Summit in Jakarta from September 6-7.

Mr. Anthony Albanese will then travel to Manila for talks with Philippine President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr. on September 8, expected to focus on promoting cooperation in defense and maritime security, development and education.

This will be the first bilateral visit to the Philippines by an Australian prime minister since 2003.

Increasing engagement with Southeast Asia is a key priority for Anthony Albanese's government.

"Our futures are intertwined - so it is essential that we work together to achieve a peaceful, stable and prosperous region," the Australian leader said in a statement on August 11.

“It is more important than ever that Australia works closely with international partners, including through multilateral economic forums such as the G20, to address shared challenges and opportunities.”

Mr Albanese said Australia was proud to host the Special Summit to celebrate 50 years of ASEAN-Australia dialogue relations in 2024.

He expressed his look forward to “welcoming ASEAN leaders to Australia in March next year”.

Mr Albanese's final stop on the trip will be the G20 Summit in New Delhi, India from September 9-10.

Recently, the Australian Prime Minister visited another Southeast Asian country, Vietnam, from June 3-4. This was Mr. Anthony Albanese's first official visit to Vietnam since taking office and only 2 months after the State visit of Australian Governor-General David Hurley.

Mr. Albanese is scheduled to visit the US from October 23-26.

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