Off the wire
• Government tries to calm pensions default fears  • China conducts military drills in South China Sea  • Singapore stocks close 0.07 pct lower  • ASEAN FMs call for self-restraint in South China Sea  • 1st LD-Writethru: Chinese shares rise after central bank easing  • Foreign exchange rates in Singapore  • Backgrounder: ASEAN Community's building process  • Russia's Eastern Military District equipped with modern weapons  • Hong Kong stocks close 1.13 pct higher  • HK new tech bureau chief vows to create diverse job opportunities  
You are here: 　 Home

ASEAN FMs agree to collective direction in external relations

Xinhua, November 20, 2015 Adjust font size:

Foreign ministers of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) agreed Friday that the 10-member bloc must act collectively in their dealings with the rest of the world.

Foreign ministers agreed that "ASEAN centrality" must remain at the core of all initiatives, said Malaysian Foreign Affairs Minister Dato' Sri Anifah Aman, who chaired the ASEAN Coordinating Council Meeting at the 27th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur.

"ASEAN must provide strong leadership and map ASEAN's future directions collectively, especially in engagements with dialogue partners and other external partners," Anifah said at a press conference.

The opening ceremony of the 27th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits, involving 17 leaders from ASEAN, China, the United States, India and other nations, as well as United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will take place in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday.

Anifah said the leaders would have a very packed schedule over the next two days, with the ASEAN Summit plenary and nine other summits. Endit