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Southeast Asian FMs arrive in Laos for regional meetings

Xinhua, July 23, 2016 Adjust font size:

Foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) began arriving in the Lao capital on Saturday ahead of the 49th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting (AMM) and Post-Ministerial Conferences (PMC) set to open on Sunday.

Foreign ministers including Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Japan's Fumio Kishida and South Korea's Yun Byung-se will be joined by fellow foreign ministers representing ASEAN dialogue partners in attendance for associated talks, including the ASEAN Regional Forum, the East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers Meeting and bilateral meetings.

Foreign ministers from dialogue partners including India, Russia, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the European Union are also set to join discussions to forward respective relations with the 10-member ASEAN as well as via associated fora.

Senior officials and diplomats from the countries have been engaged in talks in Vientiane since Thursday as representatives seek progress on regional and international issues of common concern and interest.

Associated meetings to be hosted in Vientiane include the 17th ASEAN plus Three Foreign Ministers' Meeting (APT), the 6th East Asia Summit (EAS) Foreign Ministers' Meeting, and 23rd ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) as well as the meeting of the Southeast Asian Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ) Treaty Commission.

The AMM is one of the multi-sectoral meetings being hosted by Laos as per its 2016 chairmanship of the ASEAN grouping, culminating in the heads-of-government East Asia Summit set for Sept. 6 to Sept. 8 in Vientiane. Endit