Philippine Ambassador: Vietnam's efforts in ASEAN are a testament to the "bamboo diplomacy" school

The Philippine Ambassador to Vietnam looks forward to substantive and open discussions at the ASEAN Future Forum 2024.

Philippine Ambassador to Vietnam Meynardo Los Banos Montealegre said that how ASEAN responds to these challenges will determine whether ASEAN is truly important in the 21st century. (Photo: QT)

What are your expectations for the ASEAN Future Forum 2024 when you can clearly feel the heat of the Forum in recent days with hundreds of delegates from different sectors inside and outside the region registering to attend?

In my view, ASEAN is a responsible, resilient, people-oriented and people-centered regional organization that is actively engaged in addressing regional challenges.

Decisions made at the regional level are often made through consultation and consensus. ASEAN regularly holds discussions on shaping its future. These dialogues are important for maintaining unity, providing a compass for member states to move towards a common path.

With the ASEAN Future Forum 2024, I look forward to substantive and open discussions on ASEAN’s common interests and goals. These exchanges will help us gain a deeper understanding of each member state’s policy stance on current issues. Through these interactions, ASEAN will be better equipped to find common ground and effectively address challenges.

How does the Ambassador assess the importance of the ASEAN Vision after 2025 and what are the key areas that ASEAN needs to promote?

The 45th High-Level Task Force on ASEAN Economic Integration (HLTF-EI) convened on February 21 in Vang Vieng (Laos) was an important event, focusing on discussing strategic aspects of regional economic integration, including focusing on Laos' economic cooperation priorities (PEDs), exploring new aspects of the ASEAN+1 Free Trade Agreement as well as ASEAN's sustainability initiatives.

The Philippines fully supports the 14 PEDs proposed by Laos to improve the free flow of goods among ASEAN Member States (AMS).

The Mid-Term Review (MTR) of the AEC Blueprint 2025 provided a scorecard of progress in the first five years of implementation of the Blueprint. The gaps identified and recommendations will be instrumental in shaping a more detailed blueprint for the AEC Post-2025 Agenda.

The ASEAN Community is in a rapidly evolving geopolitical environment that requires effective and innovative responses to ensure the future of ASEAN and its people. The challenges and opportunities presented by the geopolitical environment can provide the basis for ASEAN to develop a Post-2025 Vision that is truly relevant and responsive to the evolution of the ASEAN Community. How ASEAN responds to these challenges will determine whether ASEAN is truly relevant in the 21st century.

For the Philippines, ASEAN’s new vision for the ASEAN Community, which will be in effect for the next 20 years, must firmly prioritize strengthening ASEAN’s pivotal role as the primary driving force in shaping the regional architecture. This vision must be fully equipped to effectively respond to and manage regional tensions and disputes, including those involving major powers and ASEAN member states. A cohesive ASEAN is an ASEAN that strives to build a rules-based international order, upholding the principles enshrined in the UN Charter and the ASEAN Charter. We firmly reject any attempt to alter these foundational principles.

For ASEAN to thrive in the next two decades, it is important that ASEAN focuses on building highly integrated economies. This must go hand in hand with efforts to address the development gap between member states, while promoting a sustainable development agenda that emphasizes inclusiveness, active participation and cooperative initiatives.

ASEAN is a future-oriented community that is resilient, innovative and dynamic, equipped with the necessary capabilities to seize the opportunities and effectively address the challenges of the coming decades, while remaining deeply responsive to the aspirations and desires of its people.

According to the Ambassador, how valuable will ASEAN's core values ​​such as solidarity, unity and centrality be to ASEAN in its future journey?

ASEAN is increasingly recognized as one of the driving forces of the regional architecture, as evidenced by the increasing number of countries and regional organizations seeking formal partnerships with ASEAN. While increased interest in ASEAN brings greater opportunities for cooperation, it also risks exposing the region to regional conflicts, extra-regional conflicts, great power rivalry, and threats to the sovereignty, sovereign rights, and territorial integrity of some ASEAN member states.

Effectively addressing regional security issues is also a challenge for ASEAN, so it is necessary to maintain ASEAN unity and centrality, while making the most of cooperation opportunities.

The core principles of ASEAN are enshrined in the ASEAN Charter and are endorsed by all member states, including the Philippines. These principles include respect for the independence, sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity and national identity of all ASEAN member states; renunciation of aggression and the threat or use of force; peaceful settlement of disputes and promotion of ASEAN centrality in external relations.

What is the Ambassador's biggest impression of Vietnam's contributions as an ASEAN member?

We note Viet Nam’s efforts in leading the ASEAN Community during its ASEAN Chairmanship in 2020. Despite the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, Viet Nam has cooperated effectively with all ASEAN Member States to ensure the implementation of the ASEAN Community building process.

During Vietnam’s tenure as ASEAN Chair in 2020, major ASEAN initiatives such as the ASEAN COVID-19 Response Fund, the Regional Reserve of Medical Supplies (RRMS) for Public Health Emergencies (PHE) and many others were launched to mitigate the impact of the pandemic. These initiatives have played an important role in distributing essential medical supplies to ASEAN member states as well as facilitating ASEAN’s post-pandemic recovery through the implementation of the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework.

Vietnam's responsible and active contributions to ASEAN, both internally and externally, also recorded at various ASEAN forums, are truly noteworthy and a concrete example of Vietnam's "bamboo diplomacy".

Source: https://thoidai.com.vn/dai-su-philippines-no-luc-cua-viet-nam-trong-asean-la-mot-minh-chung-cho-truong-phai-ngoai-giao-cay-tre-199102.html