Union Minister for Foreign Affairs U Wunna Maung Lwin participated in the 54th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting which was held via videoconference yesterday at 8:00 am from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nay Pyi Taw.
The Meeting was chaired by Dato Erywan Pehin Yusof, Minister of Foreign Affairs II of Brunei Darussalam and was attended by Foreign Ministers of the ASEAN Member States, including the Secretary-General of ASEAN. At the Meeting, the Ministers discussed and exchanged views on ASEAN Community building, ASEAN 2021 Priorities and key deliverables, applications of external partners to accede to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC), regional architecture and external relations, application for Partnerships follow up to the ASEAN Leaders’ Meeting, and regional and international issues.
At the meeting, Union Minister for Foreign Affairs joined the discussions on the ASEAN Chair’s key deliverables set for this year, as well as on issues pertaining to ASEAN such as requests by others to accede to the TAC and on the application of partnerships. Union Minister for Foreign Affairs, while thanking the ASEAN Chair H.E. Dato Erywan Pehin Yusof, Minister for Foreign Affairs II for convening the 54th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting said that the outbreak of the coronavirus last year had changed the world and that many countries, including ASEAN, are still facing the spike in new cases and the impact brought upon mankind – be it health, economic or socials. He continued by saying that he was touched by the collective efforts that ASEAN has taken last year to fight the virus, to contain the virus from spreading in the respective ASEAN Member States, and in the region. He also underscored Myanmar’s support to the COVID-19 ASEAN Response Fund; to maintain focus on ASEAN Community building while endeavouring for comprehensive economic recovery and healthy life of peoples of ASEAN, the importance to work together by maintaining friendly relations and upholding the principles of equality, unity, mutual respect, non-interference, and ASEAN’s spirit of “caring and sharing” in the Community building efforts so that no one is left behind. He also encouraged the meeting to support DELSA satellite warehouse to be more effective and welcomed the Chair’s initiatives for providing a platform to enable the peoples of ASEAN to contribute to natural disasters relief efforts in disaster management and emergency relief fund through ASEAN SHIELD and encouraged them to promote coordination.
He also discussed the provision of humanitarian assistance to Myanmar related to COVID-19 and thank the ASEAN Chair for his prompt response to the requests made by Myanmar. He also thanks some countries for providing oxygen concentrators to Myanmar to help fight COVID-19, and medical laboratory equipment and other protective materials to Myanmar for effective response to COVID-19, and further informed the meeting that Myanmar will be needing vaccine, medical equipment, technical support, as well as humanitarian assistance related materials to assist affected people in flooding.
Following the 54th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, Union Minister also attended the 23rd ASEAN Political-Security Community (APSC) Council Meeting, ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting Interface with ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) Representatives, 29th ASEAN Coordinating Council, and Meeting of the Southeast Asia Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ) Commission.
Together with the Union Minister, Senior Officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also attended the meetings.—MNA
