ASEAN PLUS THREE MUST BOOST COLLECTIVE RESILIENCE TO FACE FUTURE CRISES - BALAKRISHNAN
SINGAPORE, July 10 (Bernama) -- Singapore Foreign Minister Dr Vivian Balakrishnan emphasised the need to enhance ASEAN Plus Three's collective resilience to deal with future crises, develop complementarity, and strengthen trade and investment, as well as connectivity and infrastructure.
He said that this was conveyed during discussions with the Plus Three partners - China, Japan and South Korea.
“ASEAN’s ability to convene a wide and diverse group of external partners is all the more salient in this day and reflects our role as a trusted platform for open and meaningful dialogue in the region,” he posted on Facebook.
Balakrishnan is currently in Kuala Lumpur to attend the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM) and related meetings taking place from July 8 to 11.
The 26th ASEAN Plus Three Foreign Ministers’ Meeting was among the engagements held on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Balakrishnan said he was pleased to welcome new foreign ministers to the AMM, including US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand and Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, with whom he co-chaired the ASEAN-Japan Ministerial Meeting.
“Singapore looks forward to strengthening this longstanding partnership, especially in the digital and green economic sectors,” he added.
-- BERNAMA
